Harry Potter and the Masked Marauder
by TheWordWarrior
Summary: Harry had been lucky. A squib decides to change that and trains him in a way that left Harry doubting his trainer's sanity. Harry becomes the masked guardian only to turn into the very thing he despises the most. A liar. A manipulator. A killer. A monster. The line between good and bad blurs and Harry finds himself on the wrong side. Can he really do it? Post HBP, no hocruxes, AU
1. Prologue

Warnings: Character death, Violence and sensitive theme, AU

Pairings: Harry & OC, Ron & Hermione (later : Harry & Ginny, Draco & Hermione)

Changes: 1) Draco doesn't leave with the death eaters when they escape Hogwarts; 2) Harry and Ginny have not paired, _yet_

A/N: Before you disregard this story as the usual super!Harry, let me tell you that it is not. It's unlike any another stories that you have read. It is a real challenge to write a story which has a start similar to most of the fanfics and still make it unique. The trouble is that the summary limit is too short for me to describe the depth of my story. So I would request you to give me the benefit of the doubt and read out at least the first ten chapters. Enjoy!

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Prologue

* * *

An old lady sat at a round worn out table, looking intensely at a glass sphere. She was a seer, gazing at the crystal ball in the quest for the future of a certain someone. That someone would be responsible for the change in the future of the world, for better or worse. She was a Trelawney, but unlike her younger sister, she was talented and preferred seclusion. She lived in a small hut surrounded by a dense forest, only magic sustaining her life. She felt that such an environment enhanced her talent. Any knowledge which she gained from her clairvoyance was locked within herself. She knew that if this information was disclosed, it would only twist the present and wreck the future. According to her, the future should only be viewed and not changed.

She looked at the ball after opening her mind's eye and suddenly the cloud of smoke started to disappear, replaced by a scene of the future.

_A hazy mist of smoke floated in the air. The air was heavy with a stench of burnt flesh and dried blood. Everything was quiet; as silent as a graveyard. As a matter of fact, it looked like a graveyard as well. The only difference was the bodies were yet to be buried, which were strewn all over the place, lying in pools of blood. Some lay face down, as if unable to show their ashamed faces, while others looking at the sky with dead eyes, cursing the gods for their ill fate._

_Some bodies flinched and moved as though unable to accept that they were dead. A wheezing noise could be heard coming from one of the bodies, choking on its last breath. Some of the dead were bleeding from wounds which were not inflicted by a human. The wounds were so deep and ghastly that even looking at them hurt the eyes. They were lucky to be dead; if you could call that lucky. They bled relentlessly from the cursed wounds as if they were trying to drain themselves dry. There was so much blood that the ground seemed to be painted a deep red._

_All bodies had one thing in common; they wore black robes. Not one however. This one was lying with his back supported by the crumbling wall of a dilapidated building. He was dead; nearly dead actually. The eyes were open but unfocused. His breathing was light and irregular. His blood soaked blue robe was torn to shreds in a way to indicate that the wearer had expanded unnaturally. His shoulder length hair was soaked in blood. Two wands lay at his either side loosely held by the fingers; wands which had killed many. So many that he had lost count. His soul was tainted by the blood of his victims._

_His chest moved up and down, the only sign of life within him. The handsome face was marred with cuts and grazes. His face gave an impression of his age to be in the early twenties but the eyes looked as if they had lived through a century of suffering. His clouded blue eyes saw only black. Unconcealed pain emanated from them, grieving over the people close to him who he had lost._

_He was exhausted; tired of all the fighting; tired of his sick and twisted life. Death stood in front of him, inviting him to eternal comfort and relief. It tried to tempt him with everlasting bliss and peace. His body trembled, as if whimpering, pleading with the soul for mercy; to relieve it of its pain. It seemed to be begging with the soul to accept death's generous offer. It was too alluring to be declined by a mere mortal. More so if one was on a death bed. However, he refused, leaving death a bit disappointed. A small smile broke on his face; that's all he could manage anyway. He was either going crazy or the loss of blood was causing him to imagine things. The latter was more agreeable, at least that's what he hoped. He searched within him to find the flame still burning with determination, reminding him of what needs to be done. He couldn't die now. He still had a little thing to do. He was born to accomplish that little thing. He promised death that he would willingly accept its offer after that._

_His time was not now. He had to live. After all, he was Harry Potter._

* * *

"Professor, are you alright?" Harry enquired with concern reflecting from his eyes. Dumbledore was leaning against the desk, sweat dripping down his face which had paled considerably. A faint tremble through his body and heavy breathing were giving the headmaster a rather frail look. This was a stark contrast to his usual powerful and commanding personality.

"If I tell you I'm fine, I would be lying through my teeth, won't I?" Dumbledore replied with a hint of twinkle in his eyes and slowly made his way towards his high back chair, which looked more like a throne decorated with patterns of foliage, animals and birds on a gild background. They were in the headmaster's office as had been the routine for Harry and Dumbledore for the whole of Harry's sixth year. The main aim of these private sessions was to train Harry mainly in the field of Occlumency. Occasionally, the headmaster would give some insight on defense and battle strategies as well. It was nearly the end of Harry's sixth year, uninteresting compared to what he had been through in the last five years. After making himself comfortable, he took a sip from his goblet and popped a lemon drop in his mouth and asked "Want one?"

"No, thank you." Harry declined politely. He had been observing Dumbledore as he was moving; ready to provide support at the slightest hint of weakness.

"I'm alright now. My age is catching up to me so you needn't worry." Professor declared in a strong voice, clearing Harry's qualms about his health. "Anyway, I would like to congratulate you on the success you have made so far on your Occlumency skills; you have achieved a level well beyond your years."

"I… thank you Professor..." Harry looked pleased by the praise from his mentor but he still had doubts. "… but I can barely manage to block my mind for a few minutes from your mental assault. Also it seems this training has failed to prevent all those… those visions of Voldermort's revelries which have invaded my sleep." Harry completed with a darkened look in his face.

"I have realized that a while ago. I had assumed that the connection between you and Tom was similar to Legilimency but it seems I was mistaken. However, I'm sure this skill will not go to waste and you will find it handy in the future." Professor assured Harry who still looked somewhat unconvinced. He continued, "And as for what you said earlier, let me tell you that I'm no amateur in the art of Legilimency. In fact, if I don't trouble myself being modest, I'm one of the best." Professor said with his usual twinkle in his eye. "You have come far from where you were last year, so don't belittle yourself."

"Do you think someone else, say for example… Hermione, would have fared better than me?" Harry speculated.

"Well, I would say yes," Dumbledore replied thoughtfully, but when Harry looked disheartened by his observation, he quickly put "but you are doing injustice to yourself by comparing her brilliant mind to yours. However, this is just conjecture on my part since mastering Occlumency cannot be achieved solely through brilliance. It needs a strong mind and a will to achieve excellence, both of which you have in abundance." Harry reddened slightly at his headmaster's words. "Now don't go comparing your skills against your friend Ron, because you should beat him hands down. However, I will certainly deny that I said this about Ron." Dumbledore mused with a smile playing over his face. Harry chuckled but his smile didn't reach his eyes.

"I feel so… unprepared for what I have to do." Harry sighed. "Don't get me wrong but I fear I have wasted too much time on a skill which is not much useful to me if you look at the big picture. There is a war at hand and I would need all the training I can get to be as competent as an auror if not better. If I honestly evaluate my skills, I would be above average at best." Harry reflected dejectedly.

"Don't sell yourself short, Harry. Now is not the time for you to judge and compare yourself with others." Dumbledore advised. "You will be prepared for what needs to be done when the time comes. Besides, you are giving very less credit to your Occlumency training. You will find it very helpful in more ways than you can imagine in the future." Dumbledore pointed out with a knowing smile leaving Harry a bit confused. "Don't let the prophecy get to you, it is only applicable if you choose to accept it; there is always an option to look the other way. However, I am certain that you have never even thought of disregarding the prophecy, on the other hand you feel it is your obligation to vanquish the dark lord. I have told you many a times that your time will come and you need to be patient. Nevertheless, prophecy or no prophecy, we will do our best to defeat him, or delay him at best till we deem you ready."

"When would that be?" Harry asked, perturbed and frustrated due to the inaction on his part. With each death at the hands of Voldermort's and his minions, Harry felt weighed down and guilty. He felt as if the world was whispering behind his back about his inability to carry out his duty.

"Soon… very soon." Dumbledore did his best to reassure him, but without much success. He tried to distract Harry's mind elsewhere. "Have you disclosed the prophecy to your friends?" Dumbledore inquired.

Harry looked slightly surprised at the sudden change of subject. "Well… not yet. I have tried multiple times to tell Ron and Hermione about it but each time I failed to make myself get through it." Harry exhaled. At the inquiring look on Dumbledore, Harry continued, "It's not that I don't trust them, it's just that I fear that maybe they will distant themselves from me realizing how much danger they will be in by just being my friends. I know I am being paranoid; after all we have been through together, they won't think twice about being with me, but this feeling in the back of my mind keeps nagging me about the other possibility."

"You have cleared your own reservations, Harry. However, I would advise you to think it over whether anyone needs to know about it or not." Dumbledore said contemplatively.

"Professor, are you saying that I should not tell my friends about the prophecy?" Harry asked incredulously, confused at the unexpected change in Dumbledore's advice.

"Not exactly. It's your decision whether you choose to tell them or not. I realize that telling them would in a way lift a great burden of your shoulders; I'm only saying that you should consider the danger you will be putting them into and increasing the chances of the prophecy being revealed and ending up in the wrong ears." Dumbledore stated.

Harry was perplexed at what Dumbledore was saying now and what he had told him earlier at the end of his fifth year. Dumbledore waited in silence while Harry contemplated what the headmaster had said. Harry looked around the room while he was pondering on how withholding the prophecy would affect him and everyone around him; he noticed that Dumbledore's Pensieve was missing.

"Umm… Professor Dumbledore, I can't seem to find your Pensieve anywhere in your office." Harry pointed out. Dumbledore looked amused.

"I had to lend it to my friend. He was complaining that his thoughts were too muddled." Dumbledore chuckled at his own joke while Harry offered a small smile. "You needed it for something?"

"No, not at all. I was just enquiring since I have always seen it there." There was another bout of silence in which Harry kept fidgeting in his seat while Dumbledore observed his ward with a hint of interest. There was obviously something on Harry's mind and was deciding to express himself or not.

Finally, making up his mind, Harry blurted out, "What are you planning to do with Malfoy? I know we have been through this many times before but I can't fathom why you refuse to heed my warnings and continue to act as if nothing has happened while he goes about planning ways to do you in. And please don't tell me that it was not his doing, we both know who is responsible for those attempts to take your life."

"As I have told you before, I have left Draco in the capable hands of Professor Snape." Dumbledore reassured him patiently but with a tone which indicated that no further discussion on the topic would be entertained.

Harry went on not noticing the tone. "I seriously doubt that it would help. Especially if Snape is in cahoots with Malfoy and they both-"

"Enough!" Dumbledore interrupted authoritatively but without any harshness, ending Harry's rant. "Please do not mock me on my judgment to trust _Professor_ Snape; I have my reasons as I have told you earlier. I have lived for more than a century and I have experienced life in ways not many have. I have learned to read people and understand them better than they do themselves. I have made many decisions in my life and have rarely found myself in the wrong. However, I have certainly made some mistakes, some of which have caused you lot of grievances. I am terribly sorry about it, Harry." Dumbledore paused, slightly overcome by emotion. Harry felt both ashamed and embarrassed by his rant and Dumbledore's apology. "I have always cared about you Harry, like… like my grandson." Eyes glazed, Dumbledore continued. "I will not endanger you anymore than I already have. I hope you trust me on that?"

Harry could only nod, tears streaking down his cheek overcome with emotion; afraid if he opens his mouth, he might break down. He forgave Dumbledore in that very instant for the pain and suffering, all the torture he had to endure at the hands of his "relatives". At the back of his mind he knew that Dumbledore was right in placing him in the care of his relatives to take advantage of the blood protection, but it had been easier to blame the headmaster for his hardships.

"I have never told you about me or my past." Dumbeldore affirmed, while Harry squirmed in his seat feeling guilty at never trying to know more about his headmaster, his mentor. As if reading his mind, Dumbeldore said, "I don't think I would have told you much if you had asked. In fact very few people know me. I have always kept people at a distance, never allowing them close to me fearing that they may end up at the other side of the wand at my expense. It was the price I had to pay for being a powerful wizard, who was both respected and feared. I was a prodigy in my school days; my magical prowess far surpassed most adults. Most people envied me and dreaded that I would take their place, hence ending up with more enemies than friends. Even my friends kept their distance, afraid with what was happening around me. I had also played some part in isolating myself from the people closed to me; didn't help much though. I lost my parents and my sister at the hands of Grindelwald, the dark wizard of my time. I had become thirsty for his blood, so much so as to become almost like him. I didn't become another dark wizard but I showed no mercy in the battles with the dark army, killing countless of them till I managed to slay my arch-nemesis. However, the face of each person I have killed haunts me till date. I had many sleepless nights till I came to terms with what I had done. I am not proud of it even though I had been praised for my efforts in the wars of the past. Praised by people who are unaware or otherwise ignorant about what it takes to win a battle, how much blood is shed. Seeing your friends and your loved ones die in front you is a torture no one can bear without breaking down, as you must have already experienced, Harry. I somehow managed to get a hold of myself and pulled through my past. It's the life I have led that I wouldn't even have my enemies to relive. I have been alone most of my life seeking little pleasures that came by way. Nevertheless, I have had a time of my life being the headmaster of Hogwarts, cherishing every moment I remember, every emotion that I have shared and seen among my students. I finally feel content with my journey in this world and I am all set for the next." Dumbledore ended his lament with moist eyes. Dumbledore looked exhausted, as if the effort to tell him all that had sapped the energy out of him.

Harry was at a loss of words, feeling honored and privileged since Dumbledore had practically opened his heart out to him, making him one of the few people who knew the contents of what he had heard. Harry was touched by Dumbledore's words, the intimate thoughts and feelings he had shared with him. A mere thank you would have been insufficient but he didn't have anything else to say. "I… thank you…"

"It's Ok, Harry." Dumbledore said, the twinkle returning in his eyes. "I didn't mean to share this with you to make you realize the grim realities of life, my only aim was to show you the mistakes I made, hoping you won't repeat them. Treasure every moment and indulge in all the happiness around you. You have a long way ahead and you need all the love you can get to overcome the final hurdle. I have total faith in you that you will do your best."

Harry contemplated the wise words of Dumbledore and realized how true they were. It seemed that he had been following the same path that his headmaster had followed. However, Dumbledore had managed to point out how flawed his thinking was and he mentally promised himself to change the ways of his life.

Dumbledore's twinkle suddenly disappeared replaced by a mixture of panic and sadness. He tried to remain calm but his eyes disagreed with his composure, which didn't go amiss by Harry. Before he could question the change in his headmaster's demeanor, Dumbledore said with a faint tremble in his voice. "Be strong Harry and know that I have always will care for you. It seems I have taken too much of your time with an old man's misgivings. You better get back to your dorm now and join your friends and enjoy the last few days of the term." Dumbledore looked somewhere behind Harry and before Harry could follow his gaze, Dumbledore put in quickly pointing his finger to a door almost hidden behind a cupboard, "Umm… do you mind fetching me a book from my library, I think I am too tired to move." Harry was so perplexed due to the unexpected change in Dumbledore's change in attitude and the odd request off him, that he didn't move at first. "I need the "_The Magical Mystery" _which is in the second shelf, three rows from the top." Dumbledore urged Harry with a tone laced with frustration. Harry quickly got and made his towards the personal library trying to comprehend what was going on. He was about to enter the door when he froze, literally. A familiar strange tingling sensation which went from his head to toe but Harry could not place what it was. He tried to move but only managing his frozen body lean on the door like a wooden plank. He was petrified by someone, but who could it be other than Dumbledore.

He suddenly heard the gargoyle move followed by thundering footsteps. What was going on? However, it soon became clear.

"Ah! How nice of you all to show up. Bella, Yaxley, Gibbon and Carrow." greeted Dumbledore as if they were long-lost friends.

"Don't move!" a female voice screeched in order. "You are getting old Dumby, didn't even have the wand ready at hand. Are you feeling so safe in your… little castle?"

Dumbledore chuckled and said with amusement, "You haven't lost touch with your silly jokes, have you Bella?"

Harry was enraged. He could never forget the killer of his godfather and the person responsible was right behind him. He tried to struggle but couldn't move an inch.

Bellatrix was irritated at having caused no fear in Dumbledore. "You are at the end of our wands, unarmed and exposed. We might spare you if you grovel at our feet and beg for mercy?"

"Well Bella, you amuse me by your lies. Did you really expect I would do such a thing?" Dumbledore stated dead-panned. Bellatrix's retort was interrupted when the gargoyle moved again letting another series of footsteps in.

"Ah, Snape, you are late Where is he?" Another male voice asked the newest entry, glad at the interruption in the verbal battle.

_Snape! He must save Professor Dumbledore!_ Harry beseeched silently. He again tried to break free of the body bind curse but to no avail. He couldn't get rid of the feeling that things won't go as he was expecting. He could not only hear what was going on behind him but could actually sense the tension in the air.

"Severus…" Dumbledore pleaded, which shocked everyone inside the office including Harry. Harry was terrified at the defeated tone of the headmaster; he had never expected to hear that kind of tone from him. Something awful was going to happen!

After a quick shuffle of robes, Harry heard the dreaded words from none other than his potions master, "Avada Kedavra!" There was a green glow which ended up in a ghastly silence. "The deed is done, let's go." Snape ordered without a trace of emotions in his voice followed by a rush of footsteps disappearing through the gargoyle.

Harry felt devastated, paralyzed by emotions that were no longer in his control. He suddenly realized that he could move again, but his body refused to budge from the slumped position on floor. After a bit of effort he turned around and walked back into the front of room, dreading what he will be seeing. He found Dumbledore's seated in his chair, the back towards him. He thought that he must have imagined what he had experienced and Dumbledore would turn around with a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eyes. But that was just wishful thinking and Harry knew it. He moved towards the chair, each step was as difficult as the previous as if his legs were made of lead.

Finally, coming around the chair, he found Dumbledore's prone form leaning in the chair. There was a serene look in his face, eyes closed and a small smile on his face. If anyone would have seen him like this, they would have thought that the headmaster was taking a nap and a having a pleasant dream. Then suddenly reality hit him. He slumped down on the handle, the dam of emotions breaking down and he did something he had never done before in his whole life. Harry cried. Cried for the mentor he had lost, for the person who had cared for him, for the leader who he had always looked upon and found courage from, for the professor who had guided him, for the headmaster who had showed him the right way and finally he cried for his own pain. He was truly gone and there was no one that could replace him. Harry slid to the floor weakened due to the amount of mental strain caused by the barrage of emotions. At last his cries became muffled as Harry drifted into unconsciousness.

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A/N: Yes! I finally wrote my first chapter. Many more to go. I hope everyone enjoys it. I had to disclose too much for my liking in the summary to peek some interest in the readers for my fanfic. I might edit it in the future depending on how my fic plays out. I have tried to make it as unique as possible and I would appreciate if anyone points out where I falter in either grammar or content. I am open to suggestions as well. Thanks for reading!


	2. The Boy-Who-Cleaned

The Boy-Who-Cleaned…

* * *

A scrawny boy with a mop of untidy black hair was working alone in of the corners. The boy looked frail, the large clothes he was wearing was making him look even thinner. He was in a huge rectangular room, one side of the room paned with huge dust-covered glass windows, sunlight only peeping through the few clean spots. However, more than sufficient lighting left the room brightly lit.

He was in a gym which had a boxing ring on one side of the room and the other side was littered with workout equipments that Harry had never seen before. Actually he had seen some of them once or twice on the television back at his relative's place but never up close. The gym was empty at this time, it was early in the morning and Harry was doing his job. Training to defeat Voldermort? Nope, he _was cleaning the gym_! That's right; he somehow managed to get this job. What was Harry doing here, he didn't know. He had lost direction in his life and was just flowing along the stream not caring where it took him.

With a mop in his hands he went about cleaning the floor. He was very good at it; after all he had received daily _training_ from his muggle relatives. He stopped and thought back to the events two days ago that had gotten him here. It was a slight change to his _normal_ stay at his relatives and Harry didn't mind. He chuckled, remembering what happened that day. He looked in one corner of room where there was a man working on some papers. However, at this moment he was looking directly at him with a frown. _Oh great! Now he_ _might think I am crazy laughing to myself, _Harry thought and quickly went back to work.

***Two days ago***

Harry was making his way back to the Dursley's house, in a state of deep melancholy. He could never call it his home because he never felt at home there. His relatives hated him and he returned the feeling likewise. He was tired of the torment they put him through and was relieved that he would be finally be liberated from them when he turns 17. Yes, he would become an adult and then no one could control him or manipulate his decisions. However, time was moving too slowly for his liking. It had been only yesterday when he arrived from Hogwarts but was starting to feel that it had been weeks. It was not that his relatives were giving him trouble, they did their best to ignore him and he liked it that way. It was the solitude that got to him; the pain was still fresh in his mind and whenever he thought back to how his life has progressed, he would feel suffocated, all the unruly emotions tearing through his heart. However, he could not cry, he tried but it was something he couldn't do. He did manage it once earlier but Harry didn't want to think about it.

Walking along the windy walkway under the depressing orange sky, he was staring at the deserted playground surrounded by barren trees and felt as if the gloomy place was calling to him and that he belonged there. He could draw parallel between the state of his mind and the scene he was looking at. He heard a slight rustle of leaves behind him which he knew wasn't wind's doing, but Harry didn't even flinch. He knew who was out there; they were keeping a close eye on him. The Order did hint him about it when they left him with his relatives, that he would be under 24/7 surveillance. What Harry couldn't understand was with the blood protection he had why would he need further protection which seemed rather pointless and waste man power. Before he could voice his questions, it suddenly hit him. The Order was not here to guard him from outside danger; rather they were here to protect him from himself or to prevent anything rash on his part. He was revolted by how the Order was dealing with him. He had a huge responsibility over him and he was no child. Well, he never got to be a child in the first place. He knew what he had to do and had decided not go down without a fight.

Not realizing that he was already at the door, he paused at the door to compose himself. He could here laughter, or what sounded like a chalk screeching across a blackboard. He wondered how the visitor dealt with that since he could hardly bear it. He must be like them, Harry surmised.

He remembered uncle Vernon instructing him to get out of the house and come back only after sunset. It was well past sunset and it's not his fault that Dudley's coach over stayed. He silently entered the house and quickly made his way to the stairs.

Harry hardly managed to clear the doorway to the sitting room when he heard a voice call out. "Hey! You boy!" someone exclaimed in a strong commanding voice, causing Harry to freeze in mid-step. "Who is he?" the same voice in a lighter tone directed the question to the other people in the room. When no answer came, as expected, he called out. "Come here, please." The trainer called out to him. Harry would have ignored the request and would have dashed towards the stairs but the _please _made him turn around and walk grudgingly inside the living room not trying to meet anyone's eyes.

Finally coming to a stop near the sofa, he looked up and was more than pleased at the expression of his relatives. Dudley was fidgeting in his couch with a worried look on his face, he could see the veins throbbing on aunt Petunia's horse like neck and Vernon's face was trying to turn into a shade other than purple but failing to do so. Their visitor was however, a perfect misfit in the people he was giving company. He was tall and strong with muscles protruding out from under his T-shirt; he had a small moustache which was accompanied by sharp eyes and large forehead. He looked in his early 40s and had a rather formidable personality and an aura of authority, just like… Harry quickly changed his train of thoughts and found himself being observed with mild interest.

After sending questioning looks to his relatives who seemed to have gone dumb, he looked at Harry again. "I am Harry." he introduced himself.

The trainer raised eyebrow with an inquiring look, "Harry?"

"Harry Potter. I am Dudley's cousin." Harry explained which drew an instant reaction from his relatives, as if being related to him was a crime.

"You never mentioned you had a cousin, Dudley?" shooting his trainee a probing look who seemed to melt in his sofa, if that was possible. Harry couldn't fail to notice the slight amusement playing in the trainer's eyes, as if enjoying Dudley's discomfort.

"Well, he… he never came up in our discussions and he only comes home for his summer holidays when he is not in his… his sch… school." Dudley stammered.

"Which school do you go to?" the trainer asked.

Before Harry could think what to say, Vernon jumped in to _help_ him. "He goes to St. Brutus' Secure Centre for Incurably Criminal Boys." Vernon informed triumphantly, as if that would help him get rid of Harry from the room. The trainer's interest looked even more peaked who was studying Harry with intense gaze making Harry uncomfortable and cautious. He suddenly got worried thinking that he might be a wizard, or worse a death eater in a disguise of a trainer.

"What did he do to end up there? He doesn't look like criminal type."

Vernon looked hard pressed to give a satisfactory response. "Well… don't go by how he looks. Looks can be deceiving you know. As for what he has done, he has done the most heinous of crimes that are unheard of."

_Of course, they are unheard of because I didn't do any_, Harry pointed out silently. Harry didn't know how long he could bare the insults and managed a blank mask over his face when suddenly he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. The trainer had picked an apple and in one fluid motion threw it at Harry. Harry managed to catch it deftly with one hand and shot a surprised look towards the trainer.

"Hmm… I don't know about what you have to say about him Vernon, but Harry certainly has excellent reflexes." The trainer remarked shrewdly. Then remembering something, he went on "I am sorry. Where are my manners? I am Lance Knight, nice to meet you." Lance got up and thrust his hand to shake Harry's hand. Harry warily looked at this gesture and brought forth his own reluctantly. They shook hands and Harry was surprised that his hand was still intact without any sort of pain. His past experiences with Dudley had been very unbearable. Lance took his position trying not to acknowledge Harry's uneasiness. "What do you plan do this summer?"

Harry was shocked by that question and took some time to come up with a proper reply. "Umm… I don't know…" answered Harry lamely.

Lance looked surprisingly pleased by that response. "I have proposition for you. I need help maintaining my gym and my helper is on leave. Do you think you could assist me with that?" Lance asked hopefully, then addressing Vernon. "What do you say Vernon? It would be nice for me to get Harry out of your hair, wouldn't it?" Lance requested, with a sparkling look in his eyes. He seemed be playing the hate card between Harry and his relatives and was hoping the answer would be in positive. Vernon seemed undecided trying to weigh the pros and cons in his big head, which turned a shade of red as if the exertion of _thinking_ was putting a strain on him. Vernon didn't want the boy roaming around _his_ house but on the other hand he didn't want Harry to interfere with his adorable son's life. As if worried that Vernon's head was going to burst, Lance went for the checkmate. "He will be well paid of course." Lance said with a winning smile. Harry was slightly amused at how Lance was toying with his uncle, but this caused him to be more alert.

It seemed that did the trick since finally Vernon said, "Alright. But I will accept the money since I am his guardian and he is underage." Harry felt sick with the look of greed in his uncle's eyes. It appeared that Vernon would do almost anything for money. Dudley was absolutely livid at how things were going but swallowed his comment due to fear, probably of his trainer. _Hmm… interesting_, Harry thought.

"So what will it be Harry?" Lance asked, disregarding Vernon's look. Vernon seemed to think that his approval was the final word.

Harry was in a spot and he knew that. Lance's behavior was normal but the circumstances were too suspicious for Harry to ignore. Lance's cleaner was on leave and within a day of Harry's arrival, he turns up at Dursley's home and offers him the job. Harry didn't know whether he was being paranoid or not but the situation seemed too much of a coincidence. Harry hoped Lance didn't have any hidden motives since he seemed to like him. As long he was within the blood protection, he could not be harmed. Or that's what he wanted to believe. "Where is the gym?" Harry asked, warily trying not to sound too interested. He was actually slightly interested in the offer; anything to keep him away from this terrible placed even for a few hours would be acceptable. The isolation was particularly unbearable.

"It is opposite the road, just around the corner. You can even see it from the window and it's only about two minute's walk. Still I find Dudley complaining about how far it is, fat boy." Lance teased Dudley with a playful punch at Dudley's stomach which wobbled. Dudley seemed uncomfortable being teased in front of his parents and his cou… cousin.

"How long have you been training Dudley?" Harry put forth, trying to get some facts before making his decision. Everyone in the room except Lance looked confused by his question.

"Five months" Lance replied easily.

_Well, it would take a lot of planning on Lance's part if he really was after me_, Harry thought. He was done thinking and made his decision. "Alright, I accept." This got a mixed reaction from everyone.

Lance looked happy, uncle Vernon was jubilant while Dudley seemed to throw of steam with an enraged expression. Aunt Petunia seemed torn between happy and sad and ended up with a comical expression.

"Well, that settles it." Lance stated rising up. "Anyway, thank you Vernon, Petunia for inviting me to your place. I think I overstayed my welcome. See you tomorrow boys." And with that he left, followed by Harry's relatives.

Harry made his way slowly to his room not wanting to be part of any discussion that might take place after Lance's departure. Harry thought what impact this will have on his blood protection. Will it reach as far as the gym? Also, what will the Order allow him this little freedom or will they interfere? _I guess I will have to see tomorrow_, Harry thought.

***Now***

Harry sighed, grateful that the order didn't interrupt his _employment. _Nothing much happened yesterday in the gym, his first day, since all the trainees were put through a grueling workout session by Lance. All the friendliness disappeared from Ian as he barked instructions and made all of them go through the hectic sessions. Harry felt lucky that he was not one of them. After three hours of what Harry called self-inflicted physical torture, all the trainees dragged themselves to the seats and plopped down, completely exhausted. Dudley especially looked worse for wear but he was not complaining. He didn't look as overweight as he used to be but he was still huge compared to all the others. After taking a bit of rest, they went through another strenuous routine. At the end everyone seemed to make a dash for the doors as if staying a little longer would put them in another one of those sessions.

Harry didn't get a chance to interact with anyone, not that he wanted to but someone to talk with, someone of his age would have been good. Talking with Dudley was like interacting with a wall.

He was now working on the boxing ring, cleaning the ropes. He was nearly done and the trainees were going to come soon. Again he found Lance staring at him from his office behind the window pane. After making eye contact, he came over the boxing ring and stood outside wordlessly while his hand slowly moved towards his pocket. Harry was getting anxious at what was going to happen. Would his fears be realized?


	3. Prophecy Falsified!

Prophecy Falsified!

* * *

"What?" Harry asked warily, eying Lance's which went inside his pocket. It was just a handkerchief. _So paranoid of him._

Lance chuckled, "I didn't know you had such a liking to clean stuff. You wiped the boxing ring almost three times over."

"I did?" Harry was perplexed. _I guess he thinks I'm barmy now; as if I care, _Harry thought dejectedly.

"You must be having a lot on your mind." Lance pointed out, with a somber expression making it easier for Harry to get over his embarrassment. "So what is the _best worst _crime you have committed?" Lance joked to cheer things up. However, finding Harry's blank face looking back at him, he tried to cover up for his lame attempt "I was only kidding, no need to get so grave about."

"Actually, I was just trying to select which one would top the list; killing an ant or swatting a fly. What do you think?" Harry said, a smile breaking on his face.

Lance laughed. "I hate to tell you, but that was a very weak attempt as a comeback. At least you have some sort of sense of humor, and here I was thinking I might have got a zombie working for me."

"Zombie?" Harry inquired.

"C'mon, you don't know what a zombie is? It's a walking dead." Lance demonstrated with a funny walk with erratic body movements and comical face making Harry laugh and Lance joined in. His first laugh since a long time, Harry realized. "So what are you planning to do around today? Sit around and watch as yesterday?"

"Umm… I guess so. Not much do around here. And don't even ask me to join your training sessions; I don't want to die so soon." _I have a prophecy to fulfill, _Harry added silently as an afterthought.

"Don't worry, today is going to be interesting." Lance said with a mysterious smile.

"I presume you are going to put them in the ring." Harry stated matter-of-factly.

"You are no fun." Lance said with a mock glare. Harry chuckled, somewhat satisfied with the decision to come here and find temporarily relief from his tormented past.

It looked like everyone who was present yesterday had returned. Harry half expected that some of them would drop off after the _agonizing_ sessions of yesterday. _I guess they have a death wish_, Harry chuckled silently. As soon as they arrived, the guys warmed up readying their body for another taxing day.

"Everyone gather around." Lance ordered, once all of them had returned and had been sufficiently put through their paces. "Today we are going to have some sparring sessions." Everyone interrupted him with strong cheer, excited about throwing some punches at something other than the _unbeatable_ punching bag. "Put on your gloves and make some use of those punching bags. We will begin when I am satisfied with the practice." Some of them groaned, unable to wait for some _real _training.

Some of them started to work on the punching bags which varied in shapes and sizes. Harry was informed by Lance yesterday that each bag has its own purpose. For example, the little one which was hanging from a stand was called a speed bag, which was used to improve hand-eye coordination while the long cylindrical one was used to practice combinations of punches.

Harry was really interested on what was going on around him. He didn't have much to do now since his assistance was only required at the start and end of each day. He was sitting in a corner on a stool, watching what everyone was doing. He saw one of the boys working on some combinations in front of a huge mirror, apparently doing shadow boxing. In another corner of the room, few of the boys had donned rectangular mitts while their partners where focusing punches on them. Dudley was one of them. Harry observed Dudley to find anything out of the ordinary. Except his strength, he looked average, far from the bragging he did at home about his _boxing skills_.

Finally content with the proceedings, Lance randomly paired the boys and sent them in the ring at the end of each bout. Harry was amazed at the skills everyone showcased, the agility and precision was exceptional. Lance was being the judge and was declaring the winner after each fight. It seemed like an elimination round, the winner going to the next round while the others watched on.

The biggest surprise for Harry was Dudley. He had earlier marked him down as an average boxer, but that was crushed by the way Dudley fought. He was very strong no doubt, but the fluid motion of his fast punches and excellent dodging skills, combined with the _body armor,_ raised his game to a totally different level. He crushed his opponents with hammer like punches and moved up the ladder of the friendly tournament. Harry could almost sense the fear in each of Dudley's opponent. The original perception in Harry's mind was shattered after Dudley's performance. _He is good, _Harry agreed awkwardly.

The final match however, was a total shocker for Harry, the outcome was so unexpected. The opponent this time was a well-built boy who looked quick on his feet. He was slightly shorter than Dudley and almost half his size; Dudley completely towered over him. William, Dudley's opponent, was at ease in front of him without showing a hint of fear, a smile playing over his face as if taunting Dudley. This got the desired the effect on Dudley who looked ready to pounce on him.

At the sound of the bell, William was on Dudley in a flash throwing three quick punches, Dudley successful in blocking only one. Dudley was also pushed back in the process, giving William room to maneuver around. He was circling Dudley to look for any opening he could take advantage of. Dudley tried his best to shorten the distance between them only to be at the receiving end of more well placed blows by William. However, there didn't seem to be much power in those strikes which hardly appeared to hurt Dudley, only making him a little frustrated.

Dudley decided to go for the kill by charging towards William who swiftly avoided the attacks and sent his own jabs targeting Dudley's head and gut. These punches were more powerful, and combined with Dudley's motion towards the punches, did some serious damage to him, causing him to groan in pain. He quickly recovered and was angered by his inability to even touch his opponent. It was nearly the end of the final round and Dudley failed to make any headway while William was content at staying away from Dudley by circling him and avoiding anymore close combat. At the sound of the bell, Lance declared William the outright winner and everyone cheered for William who acknowledged them by a raising his arms and smiling wide. Dudley exited the ring with a resigned look, but after getting some pats on his back and some positive words, he was back to his usual self.

"So how was it?" Lance posed, causing Harry to jump who didn't notice Lance standing next to him.

"Don't do that unless you want your only _employee_ to end up in the hospital." After breathing a sigh of relief, Harry replied after a thought. "You got some real talent here; the skills they displayed were amazing. I have not been much of a fan of boxing but this performance really got my adrenaline pumping."

"So you want to try it?" Lance asked, chucking a pair of gloves towards Harry who caught them with an undecided look.

"I dunno… It's not my cup of tea." Harry tried to decline, but somehow convinced himself to give it a go.

"Alright, I'll give it a shot. No training sessions for me though" Harry added as an afterthought at which Lance chortled.

While Harry was wearing his gloves, Lance queried, "What did you make of the final match?"

"Well. Dudley was really good, but don't tell him I said that." Harry added with a grin and continued. "However, William was exceptional, I didn't expect him to beat Dudley but it turned out to be a one-sided match in favour of William."

"Do you know why?" Lance asked, but without waiting for an answer, he went on. "It's because he has worked really hard, perfecting every aspect of boxing. For him it does not matter how strong his opponent his, he expresses no fear and meets his challenges head on. With a sharp and focused mind he sums up his adversary, finds flaws and takes advantage of them. That's how fights are won; one has to avoid playing to their opponent's strength and simultaneously concealing their own weaknesses. If you are afraid of your opponent, you lose half the battle already."

Harry wondered why Lance was sharing his observation with him, making him slightly uncomfortable since the situation paralleled to his own. Harry examined Lance's expression to get any hint of his intentions but Lance only had a faraway look, thinking about something.

"I disagree with your opinion." Harry opposed Lance with a pensive look. "If this was a real fight, William would be in far more trouble. Dudley would have picked up his movements and would have read through his strategy as the match progressed and prepared a counter of his own. Well, I don't think Dudley is capable of such thinking, but I am just speculating."

"You may be right but if you think on your feet and have back up plans at the ready, even the length of the match won't deny you victory. Anyway, enough of this chit-chat. The bags are over there. Get going."

Harry slowly made his way towards his destination, his hands weighed down by gloves. After staring at its target for a few minutes, he threw some half-hearted punches earning him a quick reprimand from Lance who was still next to him. "If your plan was to massage the bag, then I believe you are doing a real good job." Boys exercising around him, laughed openly making Harry turn red in embarrassment. With renewed vigour, he struck the bag with everything he had got, instantly regretting his actions; the pain shot up his arms causing him to wince. "Hope you don't end up breaking any bones." Lance chastised, enjoying every moment of Harry's discomfort. "As you said earlier, _I don't want my only employee to be hospitalized." _Lance added cheekily, causing some more guffaws around him. Harry wished he could replace the bag with Lance himself so that he could teach him a lesson, but ended up only glaring at Lance. Harry went back to working on the bag, arms still slightly aching.

After a few minutes, Dudley, who _happened_ to be training next to him, started ridiculing him, as if Lance wasn't enough. "It seems that the best you can do is just poke the bag." Dudley sniggered at his lame joke while Harry totally ignored him. After getting no reaction from Harry, Dudley pressed on "If you want some real training, come inside the ring and I will show you some of my incredible moves." Dudley boasted.

"No thanks. I have seen all your moves since we were kids." Deciding he had enough, Harry went back to his stool, thoroughly exhausted both physically and mentally. He leaned is back against the wall and closed his eyes.

"Umm… Harry…? Harry?"

"Wh… What happened?" Harry groaned, squinting at the figure in front of him.

"You were sleeping." Lance stated simply. Harry stretched, his arms felt heavy and the pain was not doing him much good. Not good for Harry, since he needed to clean up the gym before it closed and he was too drained to go about it. He had only been throwing punches for around ten minutes but even that took a toll on him. It had been a while since he had pushed his body to its limits and he was regretting it now. Seeing the tired figure in front of him, Lance offered with a smile. "You can leave for home and finish cleaning up tomorrow."

Not wanting to take advantage of Lance's generosity, Harry replied. "It's alright. I will manage." He stood up unsteadily but was unable to stop the gasp which left his mouth. _Hope I manage myself first_, Harry berated himself.

"You are in no shape to work." Lance advised with a tone of authority. "Come in my office and have some tea before you leave. It will help relieve you of your stiffness."

Harry nodded. "Thank you." He was grateful for the care Lance showed towards him. Harry followed Lance to his office, and then took the only chair opposite the desk while Lance took his seat and poured out steaming tea from a flask for both of them. It was the first time Harry had been in the office. He surveyed the wall, which was previously hidden from view, with astonishment; it was completely covered with medals, cups, certificates and awards. A few unmoving pictures were among them as well, which showed Lance posing with his prizes. Harry stood up and went near them to study them up close.

"It's a nice collection of rewards you have here. I didn't know you were so talented; being an expert in karate besides boxing is no easy feat. " Harry observed, looking back at Lance.

Lance just waived his hand dismissively and said "It's the things which I have mastered to overcome my handicap."

Harry wondered what kind of handicap it could be. He dared not to ask him since it would have be personal and his inquisitiveness might offend Lance. He reexamined the photos and found that there were no family pictures. _That must be it_, Harry thought. Lance must have felt that not having a family was his shortcoming and hence indulged in all his other activities.

"Harry your tea is getting cold." Lance reminded him. Harry smiled sheepishly and made his way to his chair.

Harry suddenly froze when he saw something move on the stack of papers. Deciding that it was just a figment of his imagination he was about to look away when something moved again. Lance was still drinking his tea and had not noticed Harry. Harry moved in a bit closer to inspect and was shocked at what he saw. _Something was not moving on the paper, but actually within it. _Harry pulled the paper from the middle of the stack and was shaken by what he saw. It was the newspaper, The Quibbler. Harry looked up to find Lance watching him, without a trace of emotion causing Harry to step back and pull out his wand.

Before he could point his wand at Lance, he was up in a flash and stole Harry's wand from his hand and pointed it towards its owner. Harry was paralyzed at being disarmed in such a manner and then finding himself at the end of his own wand. Lance had a mad glint in his eyes, a small smile playing on his face. "Well, well. It seems my cover is blown and the game is up. No matter. I have you right where I wanted."

_How could this be?_ Harry had been extra careful around Lance, observing him and trying to unearth his true intentions but it seemed that he had failed in the end. He had let his guard down too soon and now he was paying the price; most probably with his life. Where were the order members when he needed them most? How could they have permitted him to come here to be with a stranger who then turned out to be a dark wizard? Didn't they do any background checks on Lance? Harry felt it was futile questioning others when he was at fault. He now realized how foolish it was on his part to believe Lance's cooked up story.

Harry tried to run, dodge or at least move out of the way but his body had stopped responding to his mind. It was too sudden. He found it difficult to breath and his heart was thumping like crazy in his chest as if trying to beat as much as it could before being stopped forever. Harry felt he was moments away from death. The Boy-Who-Lived was going to die at the hands of a mere death eater.

"Bye Harry." Lance bade him, with a sinister smile and uttered the dreaded words. "Avada Kedavra!"


	4. Series of Surprises

Series of Surprises

* * *

_"Bye Harry." Lance bade him, with a sinister smile and uttered the dreaded words. "Avada Kedavra!"_

Nothing happened! No green light, nothing. Did his blood protection save him? It had to be. Harry was still breathing, heavily at that. His face had paled and he was sweating profusely. He was supposed to be dead. Lance was still smiling but with an amused look. He placed the wand on the table and retook his chair behind the desk. Harry stood frozen unable to comprehend what had happened. First they were talking about Lance's skills, then it turned out Harry was going to die and finally he realized he was still alive. Harry couldn't take it and staggered to the chair, weakened by the shock. His heart was doing its best to break through his chest. He closed his eyes trying to gather himself up and clear his train of thoughts.

"I didn't know you were such a loyal fan of Daily Prophet to raise a wand against a Quibbler reader." Lance joked or tried to since it didn't even invite a reaction from Harry. "I am sorry. I didn't mean to scare you like that but I couldn't resist the temptation." This seemed to done the trick.

"Sorry? Sorry?! You nearly killed me of a heart attack if not by the killing curse!" Harry yelled. He was still confused by the proceedings but he knew he had been wronged and had the right to be angry. "I am leaving." Harry declared, standing up, he collecting his wand and walked towards the glass door.

"Wait! I can explain." Lance implored with worry in his eyes. He got up as well but didn't try to stop Harry. "I mean you know harm. I know I crossed the line, by more than a mile I guess. Please listen to me before you leave." Harry stopped at the door but didn't turn around. Seeing this as a good sign, Lance pushed on "Yes, I am not a muggle. I am not a death eater as well and my intentions are good. If they were anything other than that, the order would have certainly stopped me." Harry turned around and raised his eyebrows in surprise. The knowledge of the guard provided by the order was a secret. How did Lance know? "With a lot of planning on my part, I have managed to get you here. I know you want to know why but I will get to that later. The important thing you need to know now is that I have been put to this task by none other than Albus Dumbledore." Lance ended, as if that proved his point.

Harry was shocked by this revelation but quickly came to his senses. "You are lying, Dumbledore is… is…"

"I know. But he didn't appoint me recently; I have been on your case for more than two years." Lance landed another bombshell on Harry. "I have been working on a secret project entrusted to me by Albus. The wizarding world is unaware of such a project, let alone its contents. Albus chose me due to the perfect combination of skills and knowledge I possess as well as the unique position I am in. I know everything about you and what you have to do…" another shocker for Harry. "Yes, I know the prophecy and what it demands of you. Albus had assigned me to assist you in any way I can and help you overcome the final hurdle." Lance spoke the dark lord's name without any trouble. "You didn't expect Albus to leave you unprepared for what you had to do, do you?"

Still standing at the door, facing Lance, Harry considered what Lance said. He couldn't trust the stranger in front of him, but the facts that he had disclosed was not public knowledge. He needed something to verify what he had been told. After a pause, Harry asked him with a guarded look. "Do you have anything that could prove what you have revealed to me?"

Without a word, Lance walked over to the cupboard and removed a small chest from it. He placed on the table and waited for Harry to come forward. Harry reluctantly came over to the table with a slightly interested look. Lance opened the chest by placing his palm on the top which responded with a click. He gently opened the chest, but the contents of the chest were blocked from Harry's view by the lid. Holding his breath in anticipation, Harry looked on as Lance pulled out a familiar shallow stone basin, into which were carved runes and strange symbols. The basin was filled with clear liquid in which a silvery substance was floating around. _It was Dumbledore's Pensieve!_ Harry realized.

Before he could get over the shock, the next object came into view which practically blew Harry's mind. Lance pulled out a box from which he extracted a wand, around fifteen inches long having a Threstral tail-hair core. _Dumbledore's wand! _Harry felt weak for the second time and sank into the chair. It seemed Lance was not done yet as he reached for another object and pulled out a small rectangular black card with a shiny surface. Harry was mystified with what it was and presumed that it was another one of Dumbledore's prized possessions. After placing all the objects on the table, Lance put the chest on the floor and took his place behind the desk.

Lance watched in silence as Harry observed the objects and then looked at Lance with sharp angry eyes. "How did you get hold of Dumbledore's stuff? Did you steal them?"

Lance sighed at the boy's distrust. He had thought that showing him these things would make him realize that Lance was on the good side and was speaking the truth but that was not to be. Albus was right when he had told him that Harry didn't gave away trust easily and one had to earn it. _This is going to be difficult_, Lance reflected.

Lance replied without a hint of anger after being accused of committing theft. "I didn't steal them; I had been given custody of these objects by Albus till I gave them over to you."

"To me?" Harry asked incredulously. "Why?"

"Each of these objects has its own purpose which you will realize in the long run. For now all you need to know is that I am giving them over to you, the rightful owner." Lance explained.

"Owner? You are losing me." Harry stated with a confounded look.

"Albus didn't just give you these items for safe keeping; he has bequeathed their ownership to you, legally. This is mentioned in Dumbledore's will. However, the will is charmed to protect the identity of the person receiving them. It is mentioned in the will only to ensure no investigation would be done to recover the missing items and explain to the world that the ownership has been has passed to someone else. Anyway, no one could have failed to notice that Dumbledore's wand and Pensieve are missing and hence a plausible explanation was required." Lance clarified; tired of all the talking he had to do.

"Why go to so much trouble just to give me this stuff? I have no use of them." Harry said, confused with his late headmaster's endeavour. "I know that the Pensieve is very rare and is rather a luxury to own one, but I have no interest to relive my sordid past through it. Dumbledore's wand might be powerful, but I have my own and I would like to keep it that way. In regards with that black card, I don't know what it is but I am doubtful whether it would come in handy."

Lance chuckled at the ferocity with which Harry was trying to reject the prized possessions any other wizard would kill to get his hands on. He threw some light on the third item. "The black card is actually a reusable portkey, an ingenious creation of Albus. It took him three years to perfect it after a lot of research and hard work. It allows you to travel to a designated location which would be displayed on the card itself. I won't go into detail but you will find it very useful."

"I really can't think of what good that would do to me." Harry said with an unconvinced look. "Tell me, where do you fit in all of this? What is the project you have been working on and how does it concern me?" Harry questioned, still suspicious of the person sitting in front of him.

"I had been assigned by Albus to train you. To teach you the art of war and make a warrior out of you. I AM your back up plan." Lance stated matter-of-factly.

Harry expected something like this and was mildly surprised. After all the bombshells dropped on him, this was nothing in comparison. Lance looked like the perfect fighter with powerful physique and possibly magical skills on par with most wizards or else Dumbledore wouldn't have chosen him to train Harry.

"In my last conversation with Professor Dumbledore," Harry pointed out with a pained expression, trying not to remember what happened after that, "he told me that my time to fight was not now and I had to wait. Why the sudden change?"

"Desperate times call for desperate measures. That's what Albus told me a year ago and asked me to speed up the project. Don't think that the decision which your headmaster had made was on the spur of the moment. I have something which will clarify all your doubts." Lance pointed at the Pensieve. Harry leaned forward to see the lone memory strand floating in there which he had noticed earlier. "That's Dumbledore's memory." Lance affirmed gesturing him towards the Pensieve to view the memory. Harry froze. He was not ready to face his headmaster, even in a memory. Not after what happened last time. He had suppressed all his memories and locked them away in a corner of his mind, wanting to forget all of it. Seeing the turmoil Harry was in, Lance said, "If you want your questions answered, you will have to watch it. Usually when a person dies, his memories fade away, but Albus wished you see it before that happens and hence he charmed it to prolong its life till you view. Make good use of that opportunity."

Harry brooded over what was needed of him. At the back of his mind, he yearned to see his headmaster. Lance did make a point as well since his head was filled with questions which would drive him nuts until he sated his hunger for answers.

He half-heartedly leaned forward on the Pensieve and felt the familiar feeling of falling in head first till he found himself inside Dumbledore's office. He looked around only to find Dumbledore, or the memory-Dumbledore sitting behind his desk, arms propped on the table and looking straight at him with the usual twinkle in his eyes and a small smile playing on him. Harry's heart constricted with pain, realizing how much he missed him. After being trained by him almost every week last year, he had started to enjoy the company and became close to him. Only to be pulled away from him. He tried to look away but his gaze was captured by Dumbledore, trying to drink in the features of his headmaster who just sat there looking at him or giving that impression to Harry. He was the only one in the room besides himself. Harry waited with bated breath to see what was going to happen, what was in this memory that his headmaster would deem so important.

"Hello Harry." Dumbledore greeted him. Harry was jolted out of his stupor and his breath hitched at seeing who had addressed him. _How could this be possible? _Harry marvelled in disbelief. A memory cannot detect anyone's presence, or that much Harry presumed. He moved slightly to the right but the headmaster's eyes didn't follow him, confirming his assumption. He retook his place in front Dumbledore since he was speaking with him.

"Hope you are doing well. I know this must be very hard on you but I couldn't have done it any other way. I could have simply written you a letter but I didn't have enough trust in my literary skills to convey what I needed to tell you." After a pause, "I believe by now I have already departed on the next great adventure." meaning dead. "I am not aware of the circumstances in which I died but I knew I was going to die soon. My health had been deteriorating and Poppy had forbidden me to use magic unless absolutely necessary. I didn't have very long to live. Only Poppy knew of my condition, I had to hide it to uphold the image I had maintained for myself. A helpless old man would have been only a burden. Hope I died with dignity." Yes, you did indeed.

"Harry, I brought you here to tell you what I couldn't when I was alive. Though the world took me as a courageous man, but I have been a coward. Weak when it came to dealing with you. I had left you with the people who hated and mistreated you. At the back of my mind I knew what you were dealing with but I let myself overlook it. I sent you back there every year knowing full well that those were hardest times of your life. I made decisions for you without considering what effects it would have on you. I somehow manipulated you without realizing it, till it was too late to go back. I have practically ruined your life as a child and boy. You might say that it was Voldermort's doing but I only made your situation worse. I knew that the blood protection was the best bet to shield you from any physical harm, but I was so occupied with it that I disregarded your psychological well-being. I have been haunted day and night by what I had done. I forced myself to think that it was the only way, that whatever I was doing was for the greater good. I unknowing treated you as a weapon; first protecting you in a ragged sheath, then sharpening you while ignoring the sparks and wielding you as I please. The thing which hurt me the most was that even after all you had been through; you showed no sign of hatred or vengeance. I had expected you to resent the wizarding world who had neglected you for so long. On the other hand, you accepted your fate. You were even more caring and loyal and took it as your responsibility to protect your loved ones. If you were anything less than what you are now, I might have swallowed it as a bitter-sweet pill. I might have apologized to you in the past but any apology from me would be hollow words. I had tried to protect you only to realize at the end that I failed, miserably." Dumbledore had tears rolling down his cheeks and Harry found himself to sobbing as well. Dumbledore's shoulders had sagged and his face bared a defeated look.

After collecting himself, Dumbledore went on, "I had realized soon after your fourth year that the war was coming sooner than expected and it was not going to wait till you got ready. Most people would think that a prophecy is a farce; unreliable and a figment of imagination. I knew better since I have seen every prophecy being fulfilled in my lifetime. I knew what you had to do and there was no point delaying your training. But I was a fool. I treated you like a child, trying to indulge you in the pleasantries of this school. I acted as if I was your grandfather and tried to shield you from the harsh reality. How naive I was in thinking that Voldermort would just sit back and let you live and wait till you are ready to fight back. I had wronged in so many ways that I wondered why people called me a wise man. Maybe I was getting old, but I am just making excuses here. I was wise enough to recognize my folly and took massive steps to amend it. There was another thing that I realized you might encounter. I knew that you held very little value for your life and would trade your own for your friends without a moment's thought. If you fought back, you would face a situation when you would have to make that decision. The people closed to you would in great danger. I didn't want you to live a life that I had endured. I had finally come up with a plan that satisfied your need to fight as well as to protect everyone around you without the need to distance yourself from them. That's where Lance Knight comes in. I trust him implicitly and I hope you have some faith in my judgment." Yeah, it ended up killing you. "I will not force you in following what I have planned for you. It is totally your decision but I hope you choose wisely." After a pause, he continued "If you are still here, I am happy that you heard me out. I could never have been able to tell you as much in person. You are like a grandson I never had. I am proud of the person you have become and I will support you till the end. Good luck, Harry. Hope you live a long and happy life." Dumbledore ended abruptly and waved his arm with sadness reflecting in his eyes. Before harry could react the room dissolved into nothingness and Harry was back in the office inside the gym.

Lance was already standing beside him, with a comforting hand on his shoulder. Harry's eyes were red, cheeks trailed with dried tears. The memory strand vanished leaving the basin empty; that's what he was feeling, empty.

After a few minutes, they sat down in silence. Lance waited patiently for Harry to say or ask something.

"What is the project?" Harry said out of the blue, surprising Lance. Harry had a determined look in his eyes. Lance realized that he had already made the decision and Lance resolved not to hold back any information.

"The project has been named the Masked Marauder." Harry raised his eyebrows, intrigued by the title. "It revolves around the unique strategic training plan designed for you. I had to do a lot of research and experimentation which lasted around two years and I am delighted to say that it's completed."

"Why are you doing this for me? We hardly know each other." Harry thought out loud.

Lance smiled. "I am not doing this for you. I have more selfish reasons that I am not proud of. When I was young my whole family had been murdered in our own home by the follower's of Voldermort. I somehow managed to escape my family's fate. I had made it my mission to seek vengeance against the man, if you could call him that, who had ruined my life. My inability to do so only frustrated me. I had to find other ways to exalt revenge. Then Albus came into my life and gave me a purpose, a target which I have strived hard to achieve. I have finally accomplished it, hoping that it would serve more than just sating my retribution." Lance ended with a resolute smile.

"Why did he choose you to be my trainer?" Harry questioned trying to find out what was so special about him. According to Harry, Remus or any of the aurors who were in the order could have met the job requirement.

"Firstly, to maintain the secretive nature of your training as per the plan designed by Albus. Also I have the knowledge and the capability that only I can impart to you. Very few wizards would know what I possess." Lance replied vaguely.

Not satisfied with his answer, Harry tried a different tact. "Tell me how I survived the killing curse which you had cast? Was it my blood protection?"

Lance heaved a sigh, knowing that the truth would finally come out. "No, it was not. The protection which you bear around you will prevent anyone from finding you who has an ill will against you or is a threat to you. Since I don't fall into either category, it was not the blood protection. I did mention about my "unique position" earlier, remember?" after receiving a nod from Harry, Lance stated. "I don't need a wand."

Harry was dazed at this revelation and barely managed to whisper with excitement. "Does it mean you can do wandless magic?"

"No, you misunderstood me. I have no use of a wand. I am a squib."


	5. The Project

A/N: Thanks for the reviews (finally opened my account). And yeah, I kinda overdid it with the killing curse. Though it did make the cliffy interesting (unless you read the summary)

* * *

The Project

* * *

"No, you misunderstood me. I have no use of a wand. I am a squib." Lance stated without a hint of shame. Lance watched Harry's expression which was changing rapidly and awaited his response.

Harry was stunned, again. He was wondering why he hadn't been electrocuted yet after being subjected to so many 'shocks'. Suddenly, pictures of Mrs. Figg and Filch came to his mind comparing them with the man sitting in front of him. Lance looked nothing like the perception Harry had in mind. Defeated, weak, snappy was how Harry thought a squib looked and acted.

Finally, Harry said, "What are you going to teach me?" There was no mockery or sarcasm in his tone. It was of genuine interest.

Lance grinned. Another of Albus's words turned out to be true. Lance was anxious about how Harry would take him being a squib. However, when Harry showed no prejudice towards him, he found a new-found respect for the boy sitting in front of him. Albus was right, that the wizarding world could depend on him and Harry was the right person to convey his knowledge.

"I am going to teach you everything that will help you without holding anything back. I will treat you as a fighter, so don't expect me to be soft or lenient."

Harry smiled. He was happy that the person on whom he is going to depend on was not going to treat him like a child. He was done being treated like a kid. Did everyone think that he was ignorant of what was going around him? Only if they knew what he was fated to do would they have realized the position he is in. Harry rarely depended on any one; he was an independent person. But as Lance had told him earlier, desperate times calls for desperate measures. He was in no position to fight a lone death eater, let alone Voldermort. He sure as hell needs all the training he could get. "Are you going to tell me anything about the training I am going to receive or are you just going to sit there and talk in riddles?" Harry said, slightly frustrated.

Lance chuckled at Harry's impatience. "I would love to tell you all about it but it seems we are running out of time. Your relatives might me _missing_ you." The last part was said with sarcasm causing Harry to snort. "I will explain everything tomorrow." With that Lance went back to his paper work. Harry was slightly annoyed at being dismissed so abruptly, but he realized that he was indeed late and there was no point pushing Lance for any more information so he got up and left without a word.

He exited the gym, thinking back to what had happened back there in a matter of two hours. He silently thanked his heart which somehow managed to survive the onslaught he had faced. He couldn't wait for tomorrow.

***B***

They were again sitting in his office. Harry, who had arrived fifteen minutes earlier, was waiting in anticipation. Lance held back his amusement at Harry's eagerness to learn. _He is still a child at heart, _Lance surmised.

Unable to hold it any longer and seeing that Lance was making no move to start the conversation, Harry blurted out. "So what am I going to learn today?"

"Today we are going to talk." Lance stated simply, noticing the slight displeasure in Harry's eyes.

"Haven't we _talked _enough yesterday?" Harry rejoined forcefully.

"We did indeed, but we spent more time on deciding which side I was on." Lance said causing Harry to look away in embarrassment. "Anyway, I going to tell you about the project and how does it concerns you."This piqued Harry's interest. "You may wonder why it took me more than two years just to design a training plan and why was I chosen to do that in the first place." Lance paused to give effect to his monologue. "I will explain the latter first. As I have already told you, I am a squib. You might feel that having no magical powers makes one useless during a war, I thought so as well. Until Albus came my way and guided me to the right path and from there I never looked back. Being a squib, I looked at the world differently. I became a part of both worlds. I did my schooling with muggles although I would have preferred Hogwarts. Albus did his best to get me in, but failed in doing so, as expected. Anyway, what could have I learned in a school of magic when I couldn't do any magic? I became a soldier and finally became a part of special operations in the army. I have learned a lot about warfare and strategies during my tenure. Muggle and wizard warfare are almost alike. The wand replaces the gun. However, the battle between wizards compared to muggles, is usually on smaller scale. The experience which I gained from the muggle world will surely help you in your encounters. That's not all though. Muggles, due to their lack of magic have learned to improvise while the wizarding world has remained almost stagnant. We have become so dependant and obsessed with magic that we have failed to think outside the box. Since I was living in both worlds, I realized what the wizarding world was missing out on. After intense research and experiments and with the assistance provided by Albus, I came up with substantial improvements in the way we fight our battles." Lance paused for a breath and found Harry drinking in every word. "I found that every human has a physical and a magical reserve; the magical reserve is diminished or non-existent in muggles and squibs. On the other hand, the physical reserve is mostly ignored by wizard kind and hence remains weak compared to muggles who strive to strengthen themselves physically. Imagine a wizard with well-developed reserves of both magical and physical. He would be a force to be reckoned with. That is how I want you to be. Both magical and physical reserves can tap into each other to meet the demands of your body. This is why a wizard is much stronger than a muggle and also why wizards feel weakened after lots of spell casting. Did you know that each spell which you cast takes away a part of your magical reserve and the reduction is dependent upon the type of spell which has been cast?" Harry shook his head in negative. "You must have been in many battles with the death eaters. They rarely use the killing curse; it's not because they don't want to kill but it's because the spell takes a lot out of them, leaving them drained. They will only use it if the success of hitting a target is guaranteed. The killing curse tops the list of most taxing spells followed by the other unforgivable curses."

"What about the Patronus charm?" Harry interrupted.

"It is also high up in that list which I have with me but I will show it to you later. Spells like the disarming charm can be cast without much effort. There are lots of weak spells which can be used in a battle which can surprise the enemy. For example a tongue-tying curse could render an opponent helpless if no one else is near him to cancel the curse." Lance stopped to relieve his parched throat with a glass of water. Harry waited patiently for Lance to continue.

"Besides spell selection, you need to improve the speed of your spell casting. There are two ways augment your speed. First, you need to cast the spell non-verbally..." which invited a groan from Harry, who found it rather difficult to master it last year. "... and the other thing is to minimize the extravagant wand movements. Each spell has a unique identity which is represented by the wordings as well as the wand movements. The pattern for each spell is different. Imagine drawing a Z in the air and then try drawing a much smaller Z. You will be done quickly with the smaller one. Same principle applies for spell casting. The lesser your wand moves, the quicker you cast spells. I know it's tricky but it's possible nonetheless. The other important thing in battle is your position and your movement. If you are out in the open and standing your ground, you are as good as dead. Constant motion and taking advantage of cover will keep your enemies guessing. Running around would usually do the trick except that it is very risky if you are up against a large no of opponents. Apparition comes into play here. How are your apparating skills?" Lance queried.

"Alright I guess. I had some successful apparition across the great hall of Hogwarts but that's it. I haven't got the license since I am not of age yet." Harry replied, gloomily.

"That's alright. But the apparition I am talking about is very different from what you have in mind. The technique you have been trained with requires you to twist in the spot while apparating. That is only required so that you don't fall after arriving at your destination. With proper balance, you could apparate without the twist and with further training you could apparate while running." Lance paused while this information sunk into Harry.

"That's bloody brilliant!" Harry exclaimed. Lance laughed at his exuberance.

"Remember not to lose your wand, since without it you cannot apparate. Also, avoid getting hit by an anti-disapparition jinx since it can only be removed by the caster or if he is stunned." Lance warned.

"There is so much more that I have intended for you but let us not go in to the details." Harry couldn't hide his disappointment. "However there is an important thing I need to cover. Every adult has felt that war is no place where a young one needs to be and Albus had thought along the same lines regarding you." Lance raised an arm to stop Harry's interruption and continued. "However, Albus knew this train of thought was not only futile but detrimental. You needed all the training in real life combat that you can get and hiding you in a safe room was not the solution. Albus was aware that you would rather fight than stay back and watch and he himself couldn't agree more." Looking at Harry's perplexed expression, Lance answered his unasked question. "I know that initially he thought otherwise, but his mind overrode his heart and realized that this was the only option. However, if we let you fight as Harry Potter, not only it would put you in great danger, but everyone around you. Also the attention you would garner would be too much for you." Harry agreed wrinkling his nose. Lance smirked and went on, "So I came up with an ingenious plan. You will fight all your battles with a mask to protect your identity and in turn protecting everyone else." Lance stopped to emphasize his point and impress on Harry the importance of this requirement.

Harry's eyes lit up in excitement and suddenly realization dawned on him. "So I am the masked marauder." It was not a question, rather a statement to which Lance only nodded. Harry's head filled with all the possibilities and imagined how he would fight his battles.

"What if my mask falls off?" Harry asked, suddenly realizing it was a stupid question.

Lance just smirked and without a word recovered the chest from his cupboard and opened it. He pulled out a rubber like face mask which was completely blank on both sides, there were no strings to hold the mask over the face as well. Lance held it out to Harry who took it with a puzzled expression but as soon as he touched it the mask hardened slightly taking shape of his facial features. When Harry looked at Lance for further instructions he just responded with, "Just put it on." Which he did. A strange tingling sensation covered his face and he looked around to find a mirror. Finding one on the cupboard door, he practically ran to it.

When he saw his own face, he was floored, literally. Staring back at Harry was a face of a man with smooth skin, sharp blue eyes, wide forehead and a pointed chin with thin lips. What really astounded him was that the face looked familiar. Too familiar to be a coincidence. He looked back at Lance who was observing with an interested look. "Why is my..." Harry stopped. _His voice was not his own! _It was a strong and commanding voice without any harshness but intimidating nonetheless.

Lance's laughter was cut short by Harry's fierce baritone. "Explain." Harry surprised himself by the power _his _voice held.

Lance said with a grin, "What did you expect? A muggle mask?" Lance taunted good-naturedly. "It's a charmed mask designed to take on a predetermined facial features. It not only makes you look different but changes your voice as well. Also it can only be removed by you hence protecting your identity from being revealed if you are captured or stunned. I found this beauty in the most unlikely place; Knockturn alley. Anyway, do you not like it?" Lance asked Harry, who had a rather stern expression.

"Who chose my face?" Harry demanded with a glare.

"Albus" Lance stated simply. When no response was forthcoming, Lance explained. "Albus told me that he saw you as his grandson. The mask ended up looking like him in his younger days but he did manage to add some modifications. He was rather proud of his design. I acquired the voice from my favourite muggle actor which in the end really did fit your face. Not happy with it?"

Harry was touched by the headmaster's act. He did really did care about him, but now he was dead. Sirius died as well. So did his parents. Harry quickly looked away trying to control his emotions. After a while, he said. "No, I am fine with it. "Going back to the mirror, "What about my hair? I could be easily recognized with my messy black hair by those who know how I look."

"We can get around it as well." Lance stated with a meaningful look.

"You are not planning to cut it are you?" Harry took a step back.

"Nope. It won't work anyway on you. Tell me, how many times you have cut your hair in the last sixteen years?" needled Lance with a knowing look.

"I... I don't remember getting a hair cut after coming to Hogwarts. Before that I did get my hair cuts but it seemed to grow back in the same day. Aunt Petunia even made a vain attempt to cut my hair with kitchen scissors which ended with the same result. After that she gave up." Harry chuckled relishing the once in a while happy moment of his childhood. Then it occurred to him what Lance was trying to say. "Do you mean to say I can control the length of my hair?" Harry asked, with an expectant look in his eyes.

"Yes, you can, and no, you are not a Metamorphmagus." Lance replied with teasing eyes. Harry was slightly disappointed but that didn't deter him to work on his hair. After five minutes of sweating, another ten minutes of struggling and another five minutes of straining, Lance couldn't keep himself from adding, "The toilet is over there, if you happen to need one."

This did not put off Harry in his efforts and after toiling for around twenty minutes he cried out triumphantly. Harry had managed to grow his hair long enough to reach his shoulders. "Hope you know how to get them back as they were..." Lance asked with a doubtful tone, unable to hold down a chuckle at Harry's panicked look; which disappeared in a few minutes when Harry's hair went back to its usual self, untidy that is.

Harry tried to peel of the mask but couldn't find its edge, as if the mask and his face were one. "How do I get it off?" Harry asked, slightly alarmed. When Lance didn't respond, Harry hissed angrily.  
"You are having a lot of fun aren't you? Picking on an _innocent_ person who is unable to retaliate since he cannot use his wand."

"The _innocent_ person can actually use magic here without getting caught by the ministry." Lance declared.

Harry's eyes nearly bulged out. "You are joking right?" Somewhat hoping that he was not.

"Not at all. This gym has wards similar to one's which you have at Hogwarts, set by Dumbledore himself. The wards would hold for nearly two months, enough for you till you become an adult. The glass windows which cover nearly one side of the gym have been built in for a reason. The wards not only hide underage magic but also show the outsider what they expect to see through the windows. The activities of the first two days were just a ruse to provide innocent and uninteresting recordings which would be played through the windows for the outside world for the oncoming days. This would keep away the nosy order and satisfy their need watch over you."

"Clever indeed." Harry remarked.

"That's Albus Dumbledore for you." Lance quickly moved on noticing Harry's discomfort. "Alright, enough talk for now. It's nearly time for everyone to come. Get cleaning."

"But-but how am I supposed to get it done within a few minutes?" Harry complained. "And what about my mask? I can't stay like this all day."

"I hate to break it to you, but you are a _wizard._ Use your wand." Lance returned with a mock glare. "And just say _Detego_ to remove the mask". This worked, to Harry's relief. Then Harry hesitantly removed his wand and cast the cleaning charm, looking over his shoulders half expecting to see an owl carrying the dreaded letter from the ministry. He was done in two minutes and Harry's fear was unfounded. Lance was back in his office and Harry quickly hid his wand as the trainees trickled in.

***B***

After an uninteresting day for Harry, and agonizingly painful for the others in the gym, Harry was seated in Lance's office as expected. He had done a lot of thinking and there was one thing that he really needed to ask. "Do you think that... that I can do wandless magic?" Harry barely managed to whisper.

After a thoughtful look, Lance said, "I don't know but we can find out. Lance got up retrieved a wand form a box from his cupboard and kept it on the table. On close observation, Harry found that it was not a wand. It didn't have a core and there were circular rings equally spaced starting from the tip to the handle. He counted ten rings.

"This is a magic meter wand which measures the size of your magical reserve. The rings light up depending on the strength of your magic. A teenager should alight around three to four rings while an average adult would light up around five to seven. For you to do wandless magic, all ten rings should light up." Lance droned with a strangely bored expression. "The meter might break if it was used by either Dumbledore or Voldermort."

Harry tentatively reached for the wand and loosely held it in front of him. What he saw traumatized him from deep within. Only one ring had lit. _Only one!_ He looked up at Lance who had disappointment written all over his face. Harry hung his head in shame. And he really thought he was stronger than most his age. He felt weak and worthless. He realized that no matter how much he trained, he would never be able to beat Voldermort. He was drowning in self-pity.

"Well that was rather... disappointing." Lance said with a rather condescending tone. "It seems that even a squib has more magic than you." Saying which he snatched the magic meter from Harry and gripped it in his hand.

_All the ten rings lit up!_


	6. The Objective of the Objects

The Objective of the Objects

* * *

Harry stared at Lance with disbelief. This was not possible; this had to be another one of his trainer's morbid gag which he was trying to play on him. _He was right_. Lance's face twitched, then there were some more twitches and finally he cracked-up. Harry was really getting tired of all the shenanigans. He expected some seriousness from his trainer and all he was getting was a load of pranks. Lance who had finally managed to stifle his laughter, revealed the box which he had previously hid behind his back and Harry could clearly make out the triple Ws on it. Right, so another fan of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes and to add insult to injury, he was the twins' prime investor in their early days of _prank-manship_.

Harry couldn't help himself from grinning at the childish exuberance his trainer had. Well it would have been more productive without these unwanted interruptions but Harry didn't mind. There were very few occasions that brought a smile on Harry and seeing the efforts of his wannabe trainer, he welcomed it.

"Enough of this nonsense; let us continue from where we left." Lance began in a businesslike tone as if Harry was the cause of the disruption. "Regarding what you asked earlier, it's highly unlikely that you can perform wandless magic. I don't know about Voldermort but Albus can do a decent amount of it but it's very weak and cannot be used for stronger spells. Without a wand to channel your power it becomes rather difficult and tedious to control the magic. However, accidental magic, which happens without a wand is caused by an uncontrollable burst of power, usually due to heightened state of one's emotions. But this cannot be replicated due its sporadic nature."

Harry seemed satisfied, though slightly let down by that fact. "Earlier, I did show you the things your headmaster had left you which you presumed you had no use of. Let me enlighten you the purpose of those objects. I know that watching your past through the Pensieve is not what you would prefer to do, but it does have its usefulness. You can make peace with the torrid memories of your past, watching them again will only reduce their affect on you, believe me. Not only that, you would be able to learn and improve your skills after reviewing skirmishes in which you will be taking part in the future. It can also help catch-up and grasp difficult techniques sooner than without the Pensieve. It is not just speculation, I have tested this technique on various subjects and the results clearly proved my assumption. Everything which I am going to teach you has been tried and tested so there is no experimentation when it comes to your training."

"What happened to those _test subjects?" _Harry pried into Lance making him slightly uncomfortable.

"Unharmed" Lance replied uneasily. When Harry raised his eyebrows asking for further clarification, Lance went on, "Memory charms had to be used. However, the subjects were informed prior to the testing that they would be Obliviated to maintain the secrecy. They were properly compensated and left with heavy pockets convinced that they won a lottery."

Harry just nodded. It was wrong but it had to be done. "You must make optimum use of the Pensieve from now on to relive your past no matter how difficult it would be for you. You will not get enough time later on."

Harry groaned and barely managed to mumble "Ok" in response. He was not ready for it. Actually, he didn't want to be ready for it. The mere thought of experiencing his own past, caused him to shudder.

"The portkey is another important thing you will be using regularly. You will have to maintain a facade of normalcy when you are at Hogwarts but you will need to be ready when the time comes to enter a fight. This is where this comes into play. It will transport you to the area where death activity is suspected. The card will vibrate to alert you and then it will give you information about the location you would be transported to and a rough estimate of the number of enemies. The Order, tired of being just a retaliatory force, has amassed hundreds of spies and informants which are spread all over United Kingdom. Each of them have a transmitter device which when activated will signal both your portkey as well as its double which is with the Order. After activating the port key, the responsible spy will withdraw from the area in question."

"You mean to say that I would be working with the Order?" Harry asked dejectedly. He had assumed that he would be working solo.

"No, you will have at least five to ten minutes before the Order assembles and come over. It's not long but you can make the most of it. You might be wondering why you are being sent ahead of the others. Due to the covert nature of the missions along with the training you will be undertaking, you would be more effective in neutralizing the enemies. Though it would be unsafe but every fight has its risks, no matter the odds." Lance clarified.

"I suppose the Order has no inkling of the fact that the portkey has a double." Harry stated with a glint in his eyes, feeling slightly rebellious.

"Correct" Lance echoed. "They would be rather surprised to find their work cut out with all death eaters stunned and tied up, if everything works out well for you."

"You are giving me too much credit. I have survived all my escapades until now only due to my luck, some support from my friends and big blunders made by my enemies." Harry pointed out.

"You really like making yourself look weak, don't you?" Lance asked with mock sarcasm. Harry couldn't respond to that. He didn't want to agree, but that was the truth. Was it so that everyone would pity him? No, that was not the reason. "It is just that you have been made to believe that you are weak and insignificant all your childhood due to which you have difficulty accepting that you are anything but that. You must change your mindset if you want to prevail. If you believe in yourself, you are already halfway there." Lance said softening his tone, as if reading Harry's mind.

Harry looked suspiciously at Lance and demanded, "How do you know so much about my childhood?"

"I do because I made it my business to know all about you as I had told you earlier." Harry cringed at his admission. "I have researched every aspect of your life. I know your strengths and weaknesses, your friends, your _adventures _if I may call them that. Everything there is to know about you." Seeing Harry's revolting expression, Lance assured "You may feel exposed by my research but it had to be done to plan a proper training regime, we had to make it flawless. I hope you understand."

Harry after a few moments nodded in approval, causing Lance to release the breath he had been unconsciously holding. He waited for his _scarred _student to collect his emotions.

"Can we really trust those spies you have been talking about? How can you be so sure that they won't lead me or the Order into a trap? What with Dumbledore ... dead..." Harry barely whispered the last word with a pained look in his eyes. It seemed that saying it aloud was making the fact more real.

"You don't need to worry about that. Albus was never in charge of our informants in the first place, it was his younger brother, Aberforth who had organized this network." Lance explained.

"Headmaster had a brother?" Harry asked stunned and slightly guilty of not knowing this important fact about his mentor. "I didn't know..."

"You do actually know him, or seen him at least; at Hog's head." Lance informed.

Harry catching the hint asked incredulously "You...you mean he is the Barman of Hog's Head Inn?" Lance just gave a knowing smile in response. Harry remembered having the first DA meeting in Hog's Head where an old person served them butterbeer. Harry couldn't see any similarities between his headmaster and his brother. None at all.

After pondering some more, Harry realized something and asked worriedly"I see a loophole in your plan. How will I use the portkey within the wards of Hogwarts?"

This didn't affect Lance's smile who replied. "I had already thought of it and that's where Dumbledore's wand comes into picture."

This got Harry confused. "How will the wand help? Does it allow you to bypass the wards?"

"Indirectly, if I may say so." Lance retrieved the box from the chest which held his headmaster's wand. He opened the box and placed it in front of Harry. "Pick it up."

Harry gingerly took the wand and as soon as he touched it, he felt warm sensation running through his body. The next thing nearly toppled Harry of his chair.

Out of nowhere, a flaming ball of fire landed on his lap. _Fawkes! _It was Dumbledore's phoenix but what was it doing here? It had disappeared after the funeral. Fawkes trilled softly and nuzzled Harry. Harry, it seemed, was getting into a habit of dealing with surprises. Also the phoenix's presence calmed him.

"You own Fawkes, along with Dumbledore's wand." Lance clarified.

"But-but you cannot just give away a wand to someone and transfer its ownership in such a manner. I was told that one needs to defeat the owner in a duel to earn the wand's allegiance." Harry shot back.

"And you have never defeated Albus in battle in a duel, I presume?" Lance enquired with sparkling eyes.

"Of course not! Do you think I..." All of a sudden, Harry remembered. He had actually defeated Dumbledore once in a mock duel few weeks before end of term. The headmaster had put it down as a _moment of distraction _and _old age_, but now he was not so sure. It was all _planned_. Harry felt somewhat cheated in being manipulated in such a manner; Dumbledore was really good in doing that.

"Please don't harbour any hard feelings against your headmaster. It had to be done and I had put him up to it. If anyone is responsible, it's me." Lance explained quickly after noticing Harry's hurt look.

"But how just owning a wand will give me ownership of Fawkes? And how does it have anything to do with me trying to bypass the wards?" Harry asked with irritation, unable to see Lance's gist. _Can't he just get straight to the point?_

"I am getting to that." Lance said amused at Harry's impatience. "You might know that the wards surrounding Hogwarts have no restriction on Fawkes' travelling methods which are similar to apparition. Albus sometimes used to travel with his phoenix, were you aware of that?" At Harry's nod, Lance resumed, "That is how you will use the portkey. However, you won't need to touch Fawkes to bypass the wards. Take out your wand and place its tip at Fawkes head."

Harry's wand crimsoned with a faint glow and then returned to normal after he had followed Lance's instruction. Harry instantly understood the reason behind his actions. "Fawkes imbued my wand's core with its power to bypass the wards and my wand having its own feather as a core facilitated it, isn't it?"

"An accurate deduction I must say. I was beginning to worry whether you had anything inside that hollow head of yours." Lance joked with a teasing tone.

Unperturbed, Harry retorted with mock indignation. "I am glad I was able to allay your concern." Lance chuckled. "How about telling me how did Fawkes ended up being with me? Not that I am unhappy, in fact I am thrilled of having him as my companion." Fawkes was a very intelligent creature and addressing Fawkes as a pet was almost an insult. Fawkes trilled in acceptance.

"Fawkes' ownership is based on who owns the wand. Since it's your wand now, so is Fawkes." Lance replied.

"Hedwig will get jealous since she won't be getting my undivided attention now." Harry thought out loud with mock apprehension.

"_Pissed _more likely." Both laughed.

After quietening down, Lance continued. "Right. The only thing remaining to explain to you is about the mask."

"I thought you had covered that earlier. Are you just trying to delay the _real _part of my training?" Harry was frustrated with all this chit-chat. He was getting restless. He had expected some sort of action, something new to learn but all they were doing was just talk.

"You will undergo training not only during your summer holidays, but almost every day until you are deemed ready; even when you are in Hogwarts. So you see, you have loads of time on your hands. Let me tell you though, whatever I have been informing you is very important. Don't you dare try and get ahead of yourself. I am your trainer here and you better keep that in mind." Lance admonished with a sharp voice.

However, the anger quickly dissipated and Lance resumed as if nothing happened. "We decided it was better for you to have a new face rather than a real mask. A mask would only create speculation about the identity of the person behind it. We didn't want that. A real face was rather appealing to our agenda. Still a nameless and unknown face would cause even more gossip so it had to resemble someone. Then we got this brilliant idea to make you look like you were related to Albus. It not only dispelled us of our initial problems but it also helped explaining the fact that you carried Dumbledore's wand." Seeing Harry's questioning look. "Yes, you will mostly be using Albus' wand when masked."

"Mostly?"

"Yes. You would be using both the wands later on." Lance explained with small smile. Harry was surprised, he had never thought of doing that. All the possibilities of using such an advantage kept floating in his mind.

He had a question though. "Why no one else has thought about using two wands at the same time? It clearly gives an edge in the battlefield."

"It's because using two wands is not only difficult to master but also very exhausting." Lance clarified, but not going into detail and Harry didn't push. "Your masked identity will also account for your superior duelling skills since any relative of Albus Dumbledore would most likely be powerful and potent in the eyes of the wizarding world." I w_onder what people have to say about Aberforth, _Harry reflected with a smile.

Amazed at how even the most minute detail was given attention, Harry couldn't fathom how much planning had to be done; and they had not even scratched the surface. No wonder it took two years to come up with something like this. Harry felt really excited to be a part of it.

"There is another important feature of the plan that only you, as Harry Potter can accomplish. You will have to unite Hogwarts..." Harry raised his eyebrow in surprise, "... and show the Ministry where they have blundered." Lance dropped a massive bombshell that left Harry gasping for air.

No words seem to come to his aid. Harry's mouth had dried up, refusing to respond. _This was insane_. Fighting in a battle was one thing but this was plain stupid.

"You must be joking!" Harry exclaimed when he got back his voice but when Lance's expression didn't waiver. "How do you think I can manage that? It's impossible and you know it." Harry huffed in denial.

"It is not."

"How do you propose I go about it?" Harry asked scornfully.

"You don't need my assistance. You will think of something."

"You are not helping?" Harry asked with indignation.

"Albus believed that only you would be capable of such a task." Lance said with an encouraging tone, a small smile playing on his face.

"His faith is- was misguided." _Snape is a living proof of that_, Harry thought to himself.

"You have the capability to achieve it but you haven't realized it yet." Lance fought back. "You are brave, confident and loyal to the core. The ability to love, the knowledge you bear and the wit you possess make you stand out. Your slyness and the ambition to achieve the impossible are some of the traits you cannot deny having. In fact," Lance's sincere eyes looked straight into Harry's and with a solemn expression he said, "... as per what Albus has told me, you are a direct descendent of all the four founders of Hogwarts."

"Yeah right." Harry presumed it was another one of those stupid jokes. However, Lance's expression did not change and Harry's eye's bulged in astonishment when Lance's face indicated he was not joking this time. "This cannot be true!" Harry exclaimed in disbelief.


	7. The Longest Night

A/N: Approaching 2K hits! Woot! Anyway, I am not sure whether the length of my chapters is too short. I am trying to maintain a 3K words average. If you feel they are short, please tell.

* * *

The Longest Night

* * *

"It is not." Lance stated dead-panned.

Harry's face turned a deep red in anger. He stood up, unsettling Fawkes and yelled, "I have had enough of this. You think this is a bloody joke? Because I am not _laughing!_ It seems I am wasting my time here. You can just chuck your silly project in the bin for all I care." Fuming, Harry turned and made his way for the door.

In a flash, Lance jumped in front of the door and ordered with a forceful tone. "Get back to your seat." There was no rage in his voice, just raw power. His eyes looked as hard as ice ready to pierce the person who disobeyed him. Harry stumbled backwards as if being pushed back by the command. He desperately thought of ways of escape, but he knew that it was futile, even with a wand.

He reluctantly made his way to his seat. So did Lance. Harry flinched at the intensity Lance's gaze hold and looked away.

"You think I am fooling around?" Lance began with a calm voice, surprising Harry to look up. "That I am wasting your time. You really think that I wasted more than two years just to engage in horseplay? You are _mistaken._ I have been assessing your reactions at each comment I have made and the information I have shared. All my statements were calculated and planned to drive you to your emotional limits. You didn't _disappoint_ me there. You are an open book, your emotions run wild. It was extremely easy to push your buttons. You have no emotional discipline at _that _is your major weakness."

Harry was mortified at this accurate analysis. He realized how true it was. If only he could have reigned in those emotions, he would still have a godfather. Fawkes trilled to try and calm Harry.

Lance was not done. "You are blinded by your feelings. Your mental stability takes a hit when in emotional distress. You are unfit for battle in this state no matter how good you are at duelling. Death eaters possess great skills in taunting and getting the drive out of their opponents to force them in making mistakes. To mask their own weakness, the death eaters distract their opponents through verbal battle."

After a pause, Harry asked meekly. "Can you... can you help me improve?"

Lance beamed, "That is one of your greatest strengths. Accepting you weakness is no easy task. Moreover, conquering your shortcomings requires a lot of courage, a quality which you possess in abundance. Yes, I will surely help you. The expertise which you have achieved in Occlumency will make it easier for you."

Harry felt relieved at this change of attitude from Lance. He feared that he would abandon his training after his rather insolent outburst. "I am sorry, I just couldn't restrain myself."

"Thanks for telling me, I thought you had everything under control." Lance joked making Harry grin. _He surely knew how to lighten the mood._ "By the way, I was completely serious what I said regarding Hogwarts and Ministry." _Lighten, my foot!_

"Don't you think that's too much of a burden on me? I can't come up with anything that would help me achieve that highly difficult assignment. Your refusal to help me will make it impossible." Harry pleaded, trying to put some sense into his stubborn trainer.

"You don't need me. You have to realize the power of your fame." Harry cringed at that remark.

"But-"

"Anything you say will not move me. So don't bother! Don't expect that I will spoon feed you everything. You need to learn on your own." Lance stated with finality. "Earlier, I was not kidding when I spoke of the qualities you possess. Most wizards of Hogwarts have erred by judging themselves on the basis of what house they are in. The hat, which is instrumental in the division, only assesses your first eleven years of memories and thoughts. It tries to pick up on qualities that one seems to have more of. It is too early to judge oneself since a person changes a lot as he progresses through his teens. This division, which was intended for positive competition, only results in discrimination. You cannot deny this fact since you might have done the same." Harry nodded grudgingly. "It does not mean that since you are a Gryffindor, you cannot be clever, knowledgeable or faithful. You had joined Hogwarts with a particular state of mind but you will need to leave Hogwarts as a complete student. Keep that in mind." This left Harry to ponder.

"It seems I might have slightly overdone myself in all the lecturing you had to endure." Lance surmised with a twinkle in his eyes.

"That's an _understatement_." Harry said with emphasis on the last bit. "I was the one suffering your _wrath_, so I should be the judge of it."

They both laughed heartily. "Alright, we are done talking; let's move on to the real deal." This got Harry's complete and undivided attention. "You need to take the Pensieve to your relative's place and view all your memories which are emotional in nature, be it good or bad." Harry groaned in dismay. "You _need_ to be strong and come to terms with your memories. That is the first step to attain emotional balance. Accepting your past will make you live in the present and prepare yourself for the future. Is that clear?" Harry nodded, apprehensively. He knew that after the emotional assault on his mind, his sleep will be marred with nightmares of his past. Not that he had been sleeping peacefully lately; he already had his fair share of nightmares but he didn't want another reason to haunt his nights. He didn't voice his concerns since this was important and he had to man up.

"Also, from today onwards, you need to meditate for at least fifteen minutes before you sleep. Don't think of anything while you are in this state. This would be slightly difficult in the beginning but I know you would be able to manage it later on."

"I can do that without a sweat." Harry affirmed confidently.

Lance just gave a knowing smile and went on. "The meditation will help you get some good sleep, which I am sure you have yearned for in the last few days."

"Sleep has been a problem." Harry agreed without elaborating. He was sure that Lance knew all about his sleep deprivation. He hoped that would not affect his training.

"You do remember what I told you about your reserves. You can augment your physical reserve by regular exercise and a healthy diet."

Harry scoffed, "The stale meals I get at my relatives' place hardly count as a _healthy _diet."

"Why do you need to depend on them for food? You can buy your own stuff. It's not as if you are broke. Last time I checked you had around seventeen thousand eight hundred galleons-" Harry whistled at this amount. He never got around counting that huge pile in his vault in Gringotts. "-using which you can easily exchange it for muggle money and buy some nutritious food. And while you are at it, buy yourself some new clothes. Those ragged second-hand clothes of your cousin nearly bury you."

"I don't care about my clothes. At Hogwarts my uniform does well to hide my clothing." Harry stated nonchalantly.

"Your _outrageous _clothing you mean. You need to dress well if you are planning to accomplish the two goals which I have set for you." Lance hinted. Harry frowned, realizing something but before he could say anything, Lance resumed. "Incidentally, Gringotts has recently launched a new portable withdrawal pouch which is rather popular among the wizards. You need to get someone from the Order to get one of those for you. You could have sent an owl to the bank but it would raise suspicions; exactly the thing we don't want. You need to be very subtle while dealing with the Order."

"Ok, I'll see to that." Harry hastily accepted. He had another thing on his mind. "First tell me, how did you come to know how much I have in my vault? From what I know, Gringotts has held utmost importance towards privacy and security. My financial condition should have been only known to me."

"You forget that Albus was your guardian when it came to your monetary situation." At Harry's startled expression, Lance sighed, "Or I guess you never knew in the first place. He had been maintaining your account as was requested by your godfather, who was your original guardian."

Harry tried to put up a blank face to hide his pained expression, but failed miserably. It seemed that emotional discipline was going to be even tougher than Occlumency.

Lance either didn't notice or rather didn't acknowledge Harry's anguish and continued. "Lastly, you need to improve your physical fitness and build some muscles. You will find that with appropriate exercising routine your physical reserve would increase, faster than a muggle. It's because your magical reserve would complement your physical growth. Same goes for the opposite as well. Initially, you will be doing light exercises to ensure you don't over exert yourself. For every morning this week, you will have to do some short laps around the nearby garden followed by some magical training in the gym. After my trainees arrive, you could make use of the gym equipments for a physical workout." _You mean self-inflicted torture. _Harry grimaced. He didn't fancy himself as an athletic person. The only sport which he indulged in was more dependent on his skills as a flier rather than physical strength and endurance.

"That is all for today. You may leave." Lance ended abruptly, as usual.

***B***

Harry was staring at the Pensieve making no efforts to make use of it. So was Hedwig, staring at him with what he suspected was anger. Yeah, Fawkes had teleported straight to his room when he had arrived. When he entered his room, Hedwig was sending death glares towards the phoenix that was ignoring her in return. Any approach from Harry towards Hedwig was thwarted by furious nips that could have drawn blood. Hedwig refused to leave the cage as if not trusting Harry with this _stranger. _

Harry found this behaviour rather amusing until he saw the Pensieve in his hand. A weak shrinking charm helped him bring it to his room from the gym. Sometime later when he returned from his _cold _dinner, he found it back to its original size.

That's what he was trying to do now. Trying to delay the inevitable. Fawkes' gentle crooning did little to help build up his resolve. After much trepidation, his mind overruled the fear of his heart.

He pulled out his wand and then stared blankly at the Pensieve. _He had no idea how to bring out a memory_. There was no charm involved, at least Dumbledore and Snape never appeared to be using one.

_Here goes nothing! _He gently touched his wand tip on the side of his forehead and concentrated on random memory. _Interesting choice, _Harry smiled to himself. He gently pulled his wand away and felt a tingling sensation followed by a strange feeling of his hair strand being pulled right out of his head. He watched the silver substance dangling from his wand with interest before dropping it in the basin.

He had some fun watching this memory. It was from his fifth year where the Weasley twins had wrecked havoc in the school which had, to all students delight, terrorized the rather detested headmistress, Umbridge namely. Harry's mood lifted concluding that it was a good decision to start with this particular recollection.

He decided to view his past memories in chronological order since his first year in Hogwarts. He really didn't have anything memorable or emotional to remember before that. He lived through his first year adventure where the trio had ventured in the underground chambers to protect the Philosopher's stone and where he had faced Quirrell/Voldermort. It still gave him the creeps but it didn't have as much effect on him as he expected. The second year was a bit harder on him where he relived the chamber of secrets and the fight with the Basilisk. He couldn't believe how lucky he was to be still standing here after such a deadly encounter. If it wasn't for Fawkes, he would have been long dead. Third year was rather painful. He had to watch Sirius again and felt his hope crushed when he watched his younger self accepting Sirius' proposal to live together. The escapade with the time turner was rather interesting and he felt proud that he had managed a successful Patronus charm in the end. Even in memory, the dementors seem to affect him but he ascribed it to the way they looked. He also felt stupid about the decision to let Wormtail live who in the end brought about the rebirth of Voldermort.

The fourth year was rather adventurous; too much for his liking. He did enjoy watching how his younger self went about completing the three seemingly impossible tasks but also realized that without the help from the imposter Moody, he wouldn't have been able to survive even the first task. The memory of the graveyard was extremely difficult to watch. He tried to look away but he kept control of his emotions and watched with utter dread as Cedric was murdered and Voldermort was reborn. Harry felt guilty that he had helped Voldermort, even though it was against his will, by giving away his blood. He gazed longingly at his parents who appeared in a ghost like form due to the Priori Incantatem. He felt his eyes welling up but he restrained his grief. He still had two more years to endure.

Fifth year was much worse, compared to his previous years. Being accused of lying and then being both mentally and physically tortured by that Umbridge woman was rather gruesome for Harry. But the worst was at the end where he foolishly led his fellow mates into the realm of danger. He fell into a trap and ended up killing the person who he had planned to save in the first place. He felt anger towards himself for acting stupidly as well as towards his late headmaster for withholding important information that could have averted this catastrophe. Harry also watched the battle between Dumbledore and Voldermort with interest, noticing an important tactic which he decided to speak with Lance about.

Sixth year was uneventful and there was not much to watch besides those training sessions with Dumbledore. However, he did learn that Snape was the person who had disclosed a part of the prophecy to Voldermort, which resulted in Harry becoming an orphan. Snape finally ended up betraying Dumbledore who paid with his life for his misconceived judgement. Harry's hatred towards Snape almost equalled with what he held for Voldermort.

As he watched the last memory, he felt perturbed at the way Dumbledore died. There was something rather odd about it. He re-examined what had occurred before the death of his headmaster. He found that the events were very unnatural and forced. Dumbledore was too open towards Harry, disclosing most of his secrets to him as if he would not get another chance to do it. Harry knew that Dumbledore was weakening due to his poor health and had perceived he had not long to live, but his admission to Harry was rather rushed. He also noticed that first Dumbledore tried to get rid of Harry quickly but in the end asked him to perform a menial task by sending him to his library. Why was he trying to get him out-of-the-way? Was he expecting someone or something? Or did he foresee that he was going to die. No, that could not be it. Why would Dumbledore await his own death? Why didn't he defend himself against the death eaters? He didn't even have the wand at hand to defend himself from what he had managed to hear. He could have easily taken them all out or at least defended himself till help arrived. Also what were the death eaters doing in Hogwarts and how did they enter? Harry was certain that Draco Malfoy had something to do with it. His head filled up with doubts and questions but felt frustrated since no one could answer them. He thought of asking Lance tomorrow about it.

After three hours of mental agony he was finally relieved of this ominous task. He felt harebrained after he came back to reality. It seemed longer than three hours for Harry who was tired to the bone. Fawkes was no longer around and Hedwig seemed to cool down a bit, though she still ignored Harry.

Harry sat crossed leg on the dusty floor and tried to clear his mind to prepare for his meditation. What seemed to be an easy task for Harry now proved to be extremely difficult. His head was overflowing with whatever memories he had relived. He was unable to maintain focus and the control on his mind was out of his reach.

He tried using his Occlumency technique which fortunately, paid large dividends in terms of clearing his mind. His occluding skill was slightly rusty after not practicing it for the last one week but now was a good time to recommence it. It was still difficult, but by isolating his emotional self from his mind he gained the required focus to empty his mind.

He found himself pleasantly surprised at the end of his meditation. His head felt light and clear and he wished that he would get a good night's sleep. Recently, his scar had been prickling constantly but luckily there had been no visions along with it. This hopefully meant that either there were no revelries or Voldermort was blocking the connection.

He sighed in comfort as he lay in bed; not because the bed was comfortable, it was anything but that. It was actually his relaxed state of mind which was free of any thoughts, which he seldom had the luxury to enjoy.

He closed his eyes. Suddenly he woke up startled by the alarm clock on the table which rang unceremoniously. He cursed himself for not setting the time properly and quickly got up to turn off the shrill noise before his uncle started a racket. He was shocked to see that he had indeed set the right time and it was six o'clock in the morning. He felt as if he didn't sleep much but was surprised to find his body refreshed. _Hmm, I should do this more often._

He got up to leave the room but stopped when he glanced at the dirty mirror on the broken cupboard. He cleaned it and then removed his T-shirt to have a look at his reflection. He found a malnourished boy, ribs and bones poking out, looking back at him. He sighed heavily. He hoped his frail body could handle what's coming his way.

He refreshed himself and silently went down to the kitchen. His hunt in the fridge got him a glass of milk and a cold sandwich. After cleaning his plate, he exited the house and started running towards the garden. The air was refreshing and there was a gentle breeze flowing against him. The atmosphere had a very soothing effect on his nerves. He found a few people jogging on the opposite side of the road.

After reaching the garden, he ran a steady pace circling the garden. To his disappointment, he found himself out of breath after just completing one lap. What did he expect anyway? He sat on a bench to relieve his revolting muscles in his legs and to ease the burning in his lungs. He heard a distinct noise which was not natural. He was being followed, most likely the Order.

"Who is out there? Show yourself!" Harry commanded, knowing full well that it had to be an Order member.

He made to reach for his wand but was interrupted by a throaty voice. "It's me Mundungus." _Ah, the right person for the job at hand, _Harry thought inwardly, smiling to himself. He quickly slid of his invisibility cloak to reveal himself, a short man with baggy eyes and long and untidy ginger hair.

"How nice to see you, Dung?" Harry greeted, trying to keep out the sarcasm out of his voice. He returned to the bench. "So how many of the Order is out there _wasting_ time guarding me?" Mundungus kept his mouth which seemed a rather huge accomplishment. "What? Has the Order _ordered _to not to speak with the Boy-Who-Lived?" Harry asked with mock anger.

"No such thin'. So how have you been doin' Potter?" Mundungus asked, not really interested in the answer.

"As usual. Say Dung, I wonder if you could help me. I need some money from my vault but I can't go to Gringotts. Is there anything you could do to help me?" Harry requested, trying his best to act innocently.

"Whaddo you need the money for?" Mundungus queried suspiciously.

"I need to buy some new clothes; mine seem to have outgrown me." Harry replied with a glint in his eyes.

Mundungus chortled but quickly put up an act of indifference. "What's in it for me?"

_Time for the final gambit. _"Well, I could spare some galleons for your services." The greedy look in Mundungus eyes clearly gave his response. He was not going to miss out an opportunity to earn some Galleons.

"Alright." Mundungus answered quickly, as if afraid that Harry would change his mind. "But I dunno how I can manage to get yer money from that nasty bank. They don' even let me in."

"Oh! Is there no way I could get the money myself without going to the bank?" Harry hinted, laying the trap.

"Wait a secon'! There is a way actually. Those goblins havbin givin' out pouches from which you can take 'em money from yer vault directly. I'm not sure whether they would giv me one for you." Mundungus informed hesitantly, feeling the galleons slipping from his grasp.

"Don't worry, I'll send a letter to Gringotts to allow you to take one for me." Harry reassured.

"Yeh, that should do the trick." Mundungus exulted with relief.

"Great!" After a pause, "Can you tell me what has been happening in the wizarding world?" Harry popped the question, hoping for a response

"Not much to tell." Mundungus replied tight-lipped.

"You know, I could add in some more galleons for some harmless information. No one would come to know about our little dealing." Harry pointed shrewdly.

After some mental debate, or something similar on those lines, Mundungus said, "You-Know-Who hasbin quiet mostly, besides two or three random attacks on wizardin' homes. Much mo' peaceful compared to the last war."

"Any deaths?" Harry asked apprehensively, hoping for a negative answer.

He was badly disappointed. "An auror and a boy."

"Anyone I know?" _Please say no! _Mundungus was fidgeting, toeing the grass and didn't answer straight away. "Well?"

"You may not know the auror but... but the boy who died was a student of Hogwarts. Dennis Creevey."

* * *

A/N: There, I somehow managed to explain the odd behaviour of Lance. I don't really like begging for reviews, but if you have any comments or feedbacks, feel free to post them. I just want as many readers a possible.


	8. Despair of the Damned

Despair of the Damned

* * *

He slowly made his way to the gym. His mind which had seemed stable a while ago was under tremendous strain. His inquisitiveness in the wizarding world got him a lot more information that he bargained for.

Harry still remembered that petite boy who was part of Dumbledore's army. He was the brother of Colin and both were big fans of Harry. They kept fawning over him, taking pictures and talking to him whenever they could. The sole reason for this tragedy was because they were Muggle-born. Harry's heart constricted at how Colin was feeling about his loss and wondered how his family was dealing with this situation since both his parents were Muggles. They both were rather innocent and this blow to Colin would scar him for life. His heart went out to them; he knew how it felt to lose someone close to you.

He felt powerless. He knew he couldn't have saved him, but he somehow managed to blame his death on himself. Yeah, he had a rather bad habit of doing that. He knew there was a long way ahead of him and it would be very difficult but no matter how hard it gets, he would push on. _I will fight to protect! _Harry mentally promised himself.

With this resolve he entered the gym to find Lance waiting for his arrival. "Hey Harry!"

"Hello" Harry muttered in response.

"Is everything alright?" Lance pried with a concerned expression. "Didn't sleep well I guess. I knew-"

"It's not that." Harry interrupted with a sigh. "I slept well and was fine till I had a run in with one of the Order members. I asked about what was happening and..." Harry drifted in silence.

"You heard about the deaths I presume." Lance picked up on Harry's thoughts. "I know it's difficult to accept that you cannot do much. Nobody can protect everyone no matter how strong they are. I hope you realize that."

"I have heard that before." Harry sighed.

"From Miss Granger I guess." Lance surmised, startling Harry. Even if he knew that Lance was acquainted with all the information on him, it still made him rather uncomfortable. He was still a stranger to him and he seemed to know him more than his friends. "Right, now you need to maintain focus and clear your mind. You are going to learn to apparate without the 'twist' today." This managed to bring Harry out of his state of depression.

"Are we going to train here?" Harry asked, seeing there was not much room in the gym.

"Nope, follow me." Lance led him to the small storeroom, which was occupied by brooms, mops and other necessities to maintain the gym. Lance twisted the door knob in the opposite direction and tried to push the door, which actually opened outward. Before Harry could point out that the door opens outwards, the door somehow squeezed in, magically. _Surprise surprise. _Harry was still shocked; not because of the magical door, but what lay behind it. It was a huge rectangular room, size almost equal to the gym. In one corner he could see assortment of equipments. He could make out dummies, targets and... _tennis ball machines. _What was that doing here?

"I don't have all day you know." Lance chided. Harry was still standing at the doorway awestruck. He sheepishly made his way towards the centre of the room.

"Let's get on with on with it." Lance began, taking on the tone which he used for the trainees. "Do you see those four circles on each corner of the room?" At Harry's nod, "You need to apparate into those circles and back here. Do it the way you have learned." Saying which Lance stepped back.

Harry took out his wand and after some nervousness, he found himself in a circle. Well, not exactly in the circle since one of his feet was outside it. He was still in one piece which relieved him. Then a rather horrifying thought came to him. "What happens if I splinch?"

Lance's reply did more harm to Harry's already aggravated composure. "Let's hope you don't."

"You can't be serious?" Harry exclaimed with outrage.

"I am not Sirius." Lance stated with a challenging look.

Harry paled considerably. "That is nothing to joke-"

"What did I tell you earlier?" Lance interrupted him. "You need to detach yourself from all emotions and shield your mind from the words that could hurt you. If you can't bear to hear a few taunts or insults, how do you plan to cope with people dying around you in battle?" At Harry's horrified countenance, he went on, "Yes, death is inevitable in battle, especially when you are up against death eaters. They don't hold any value to life and hence you will find someone dead. How will you continue fighting when someone has died? What if the person dead is someone you know? What if-"

"NO!" Harry exclaimed in despair. "I don't want to think about it."

"You can't _even_ think about it now. How do you plan to hold yourself together when something like that happens? Huh? The fight won't stop till the enemy retreats or is defeated. You cannot give up until that happens. You need to put away your grief till the battle ends." Lance spelled out the ugly truth. "I know it's very difficult to control your emotions. You are more affected because you have been exposed to the worst kind of situations, unsettling any semblance of emotional balance in you. It will take time; there is no short cut to achieve emotional discipline. Beware of my taunts, which I will surely send your way and do your best to tame your mind."

"Right! Back to training." Lance ordered. "Apparate some more and try to make sure you do so within the circles." After composing himself, Harry apparated around the room with the required level of accuracy. "Good. Now try without the twist. And have no fear."

_Easy for you to say._ Harry kept the thought to himself though. His first few attempts ended up in tripping himself and landing hard on the floor. He did manage to apparate to the desired location though. After few more unsuccessful tries, Lance suggested, "When you apparate from one location to another, your body twists around and therefore everyone twists their body before their apparition to maintain balance. Try jumping and apparating in mid-air."

This proved useful. He did landed awkwardly or lost his balance but he was not sprawled on the floor as before. Soon, with proper timing, he was able to make a steady landing after apparating.

Then he tried apparating without jumping which still proved rather difficult. After around ten minutes of failed attempts, he started feeling weak. Lance quickly stopped him. "That would be enough for now. You are drained magically but you need all your strength for the workout afterwards."

Harry groaned. "So what will we do for the next half an hour? It's still seven o'clock."

"Potion making." Lance stated without preamble.

Harry was startled and exclaimed in distaste. "What has _potion making_ got do with my training?"

Lance switched his tone to lecture mode, to Harry's annoyance. "Everything. Potions act as a support for you in battle. A healing potion would provide you relief from pain and slowly heal your wounds, or a rejuvenation potion would revitalize you after a long fight. Make no mistake, these potions don't add anything extra to your reserves, just allow quick transfer between them. Managing your reserves is the most important aspect in battle if you wish to last it out."

Lance retrieved a neatly folded sheet from his pocket and handed it to Harry. "This is the list of all the potions I could think of which could come in handy. See which ones you know."

Harry browsed through the list which included twenty three potions. He knew how to make half of them, or at least remembered how to. Then he saw a potion which intrigued him. "What does the Magic Burst Draught do?"

"It provides you with an increased burst of magical strength over a short period of time." as Harry suspected. Lance went on, "However, after the potion wears off you will find yourself physically drained so this potion should only be used when in dire need or if you plan to end the fight."

"Hmm... there is something missing over here."

"What's that?" Lance queried, surprised that he missed out on something important.

"Love potion." Harry stated innocently. "I could chuck that potion in the midst of the death eaters and behold, I would gain some followers. Voldermort would be so pissed." Harry burst out laughing.

Lance snorted, "Interesting. Add it to the list."

Harry's face broke into mock disgust. "You are out of your mind. I don't want anyone kissing the helm of my robes, its revolting."

"I think they would rather end up kissing you." Harry gagged at this thought. "Anyway, I thought you would enjoy having some followers, so that you could accomplish your plan to be the next dark lord." Lance stated with watchful eyes.

Harry's face twisted in horror. Realizing what Lance was doing, he quickly controlled himself. "You need to do better than that." Harry taunted good-naturedly.

"Well done." Lance nodded with approval. Lance barked, "That does not mean you can relax. Go over there and check the cupboard for ingredients and start making a few potions which you know about. There is also a book for potion making which you could refer to." Lance pointed to a small table.

Harry checked the small cupboard above the table and found it had all the ingredients required for the potions he was going to practice. He found the book as well, but it didn't have any cover on it and he could not find any information about the author. It just listed the potions with the ingredients and the relevant steps to make it.

He suddenly remembered the sixth year potions book which actually belonged to Snape's. Harry had a good mind to destroy it since he didn't want to do anything with belongings of that traitor. However, he knew that was a foolish way of thinking. That book held lots of tips and information which really did help him excelling in his sixth year. He had previously hid the book from its owner, in the Room of Requirement, but before the end of the term, he had retrieved it and now it was lying in the bottom of his trunk.

Coming out of stupor, Harry quickly went about clinking glass tubes and crushing ingredients. His skills were rusty and the potions which he managed to concoct looked different from what he was expecting. Lance sniffed at the contents of his vials and sneered. "Typical... I knew you had not much skill in anything and it seems you do your best to prove me right. Even fame has its limits."

Harry smiled, "Wow! If I didn't know better, I would have thought that it was Snape breathing down my neck in a potion class."

Lance face changed into a huge grin. _This boy is catching up._ "I think our time is up. Let's leave."

***B***

"Dad is not going to pay for all this." Dudley seethed vehemently, going slightly red.

Harry was using some light weights to work out his body. He contemplated whether his cousin deserves his attention or not. He found himself being watched by Lance and sighed. "He doesn't need to."

"Then who will?" Dudley asked slight flummoxed.

Harry bit back his retort and answered evenly. "I will"

Dudley's eyes brightened with realization and growled. "So Lance is not going to hand over the money to my dad. Instead you are going to waste it on this."

Harry had enough. His cousin had no right meddling in his business. He looked at Dudley with sharp eyes, causing him to slightly recoil under his gaze. "Don't interfere with my life. Go and play with your little friends." He went back to what he was doing, trying to draw out the rage from within him. Dudley opened and closed his mouth like a fish, but thought better of not to respond and left. _What's his problem? What is everybody's problem? Can't they leave him alone?_

"Easy boy, don't overexert." Lance calmly soothed him from behind. "Take a break. When you feel relaxed, resume your workout. There is no hurry, be calm and patient."

"Easy for you to say." Harry spat.

"Yes it is. You didn't expect your life to be a cake walk. You are lucky compared to me."

"How so?" Harry inquired sceptically. _His life was a total nightmare, how can I be luckier than anyone else?_

"We both are orphaned. But you have the power to avenge your family, while I don't. I feel so weak and useless. I have to depend on someone else to do my work. Do you have any idea how that feels? How it feels to be unable to accomplish your heart's foremost desire." Lance's eyes glazed with pain, the first indication of emotion. He was human after all. He quickly resumed with a collected voice. "Remember that I and everybody else who have lost someone to the dark side will depend on you for retribution. Don't take this as a burden, rather consider it as a motivation so that you don't look back and keep surging ahead."

Harry only managed to nod. The monstrosity of the task hit him full in the face. Only he could do it. And the whole world depended on him. So if he fails, the world dies with him. He felt as if he was the unsung hero of a book, where the world thrusts him against the dark side. The twist was that the hero was a cripple, devoid of strength or skill. The world's hope was in the person who had no hope at all. _How tragic_. Harry chuckled darkly, causing Lance to raise his eyebrows. He left without another word leaving Harry to his dark thoughts.

***B***

As soon as the last of the trainee left, Harry and Lance went back to the training room. Harry couldn't suppress his bursting anticipation. _Was he going to learn some new spells, or some new technique?_

Lance wordlessly went to the corner where all the things were lying and pulled the three tennis ball machines to the middle of the room arranging them in such a manner that all three were facing one of the walls. They were all focusing on a single point on the wall. Harry deduced that he was going to learn to shield himself and block those balls.

"Give me your wand." Lance ordered.

"What?" Harry fired back, "How will I defend myself then?"

"You will not. You are supposed to dodge them." Lance stated simply.

"I am exhausted to the bone." Harry complained and his drooping shoulders were trying to relay the message as well.

"Have some of the Invigorating Draught that you made earlier. It's not perfect but you will find yourself refreshed." Saying which, Lance handed the potion vial to Harry. With distaste Harry choked down the potion. _Why do these potions have to be so disgusting? _Somehow reading Harry's mind, Lance proclaimed, "It tastes like that to ensure that no one gets into a habit of drinking it regularly."

"If I hadn't known better, I would have thought you were a master of Legilimency." Harry pointed out uncomfortably.

"I am just good at reading expressions." Lance stated. "Now go and stand over there in that circle and prepare yourself."

Feeling slightly energized by the potion, Harry swiftly made his way to become the _target. _He looked at Lance who was smiling to himself while twisting some knobs on the machines, much to his annoyance. Harry couldn't stop himself from saying "You look as if you are really going to enjoy watching me jumping around and getting hit by those bloody balls."

Lance's smile widened, if that was possible. "Who will not? I am lucky to get front row seats to watch the Jumping-Bespectacled-Monkey with a horrible scar on his head. Wish I had a camera."

"You will do no such thing!" Harry exclaimed with mock outrage, trying to stifle his smile.

"Here we go." Lance announced without warning and quickly turned on all three machines. The balls came fast with a small interval between them. Harry however, was doing well to avoid them all using his Quidditch reflexes. Lance nodded with an appraising look and turned some more knobs. The speed of the balls didn't change but the interval shortened. Balls started hitting Harry who had a slightly pained expression. He was doing a rather comical jig to dodge those balls while still staying in the circle. Lance couldn't hold himself and burst out laughing.

Luckily, Harry was too focused on the oncoming balls, so he didn't hear the laughter. After three minutes of dodging, the balls ran out, Harry fell to the floor and breathing heavily.

Lance waited for Harry to gather himself and then spoke. "You have fast reflexes no doubt but you need to make them even better."

"What's... the point?" Harry asked between breaths. "I could easily use... a shield."

"You could but it gives the opponent the chance to attack rapidly without worrying about return fire. You should shield yourself only if you are in a spot with not much space to move around or you are trying to defend someone else. Also using a shield is rather draining since you need to maintain it and hold it under the onslaught of spell fire. It's better to dodge and return fire. Dodging is also useful for unblockable curses or curses which you are not aware of." Lance enlightened him.

Harry recalled something. "While I was perusing my memories, I happened across the duel between Dumbledore and Voldermort at the end of my fifth year. Instead of dodging the killing curse, the headmaster animated the statues to block the curse."

"Yes it's an effective technique which I was planning to teach you sometime later. The killing curse has a pure magical essence and hence can be easily blocked by corporeal objects. However, if you conjure objects to defend yourself, it won't work since you are blocking magic with magic which would result in the curse winning in the end. To sum it up, you could either summon objects in the path of the curse or animate objects to act as your shield."

Harry agreed, realizing the importance of mastering this technique. It would greatly increase the chance for his survival. "Speaking of Dumbledore, I am really confused at what happened before the headmaster died." Harry put forth, suppressing his distress.

"What happened? I am not privy to the way he died. I can't use the Pensieve hence you will have to recount the events that had transpired."

Harry, with great difficulty, gave a detailed description of the proceedings while Lance listened attentively without any interruptions. At the end of his narration, Lance bore a pensive look, while Harry just exhaled in relief grateful that he had finished. "This 'he' the death eaters were referring to, you presume its Draco?"

"I am sure of it."

"Thanks for telling me. I will think it over and inform you later about my deductions. Alright, back to dodging." Harry groaned, as usual. "Lazy" Lance teased.

***B***

"What is this I hear?" Uncle Vernon bellowed at Harry after confronting him. His uncle had just come home from work and Harry had come down for dinner. Aunt Petunia was standing in the doorway of the sitting room with a stern expression. Dudley was hiding behind her, poking his head out. Harry presumed that his cousin had told on his usage of the gym to his uncle. Harry eyed Dudley with such intensity that his cousin whimpered and hid his face as well, causing Harry to smile. This enraged his uncle even more who screamed "Answer me!" causing spittle to fly all around.

Harry paused to further aggravate his uncle but before he could shout again, he asked innocently, "What did you hear?"

"You bloody well know what I am talking about. You were using the equipments in the gym. I am not going to spare a _penny_ for you to use them. Also I won't let you take your wages from Lance since you are underage." Uncle Vernon raged, his face turning a deep red, as if he was having difficulty speaking in long sentences.

"_I_ _am_ paying him." Harry stated forcefully. He knew it was a lie but there was no reason for them to know the truth.

"You don't have any money, where did you get the money from? Did you steal?" Aunt Petunia butted in with her allegations, assuming the worst.

"I didn't." Harry seethed in rage. He had enough of this.

"Then where is the money coming from?" Harry's aunt grilled him.

Before Harry could retort, Uncle Vernon exclaimed "Ah! I forgot. His parents left him some money. From that's where I get the-" he suddenly paused realizing what he was saying. Aunt Petunia was giving him a probing look but Harry was plain livid.

"How do you know my parents have left me any money?" Harry spoke in a slow and deadly voice causing his uncle to take a step back and Dudley to recoil.

"Well..." His uncle mumbled unable to come up with a coherent sentence.

"How?" Harry repeated with the same the fervour, with additional venom.

"I... I have been getting paid every... every month as remuneration for taking care... of you." Uncle Vernon stammered.

"How much?"

"Two... two hundred pounds."

"What?" Harry shouted. "So all this while you were being _paid_ for my _care, _whereas you have not even shown a hint of concern or paid any heed to my well-being. Also, you have kept telling me how much of burden I am on you and that I am living on free food and hence deserved the leftovers. I accepted the mistreatment and the insults, thinking that you were doing me a favour. How could you do this to me? And you aunt Petunia? Is the hate for your sister blinded you so much that you don't care who you take your anger out on? Is your hatred for me so much as to not show even a hint of care? Did I do anything to deserve such cruelties at the hands of you all? Didn't you realize that I was just a child?" Harry was breathing heavily but he was not done. "My childhood has been so marred, so horrible that even trying to remember my past gives me the shivers. There is a limit of how much I can take. You lot don't need to worry though. There is only a month remaining, after which we all will be free from each other. I will _never _show you my face again. _Never!" _ending his rant, he stomped to his room and banged the door behind him. He sagged against the door, both physically and emotionally drained. _Why was his life so difficult?_ He felt like he had been walking on burning coals all his life.

He felt so lonely. He couldn't share his grief with anyone. Lance was just training him. His personal problems weren't his concern. His friends were far away, the only method to contact them had been banned for his own security. He realized that if another person with a weaker mind was in his place, he would have killed himself long ago.

He quickly shook his head as if to get rid of that morbid thought. He had to focus. He had to live through this month, come hell or high water.

He had to watch all his memories again tonight, and for the next five nights as well. _Just the thing I need._ After watching selective memories which exhibited high emotional content, he meditated and went to sleep.

He expected to fall asleep as yesterday, but he was not so lucky. He kept rolling around in his bed agitated with odd thoughts, till sleep claimed him. Even his sleep was haunted by nightmares.

It was just another _normal _night for Harry.

***B***

"Here, I got it for you" Mundungus appeared from his cloak and handed over the pouch to Harry, who was about to run his laps around the garden.

"You seem to be in a hurry." Harry took the pouch and examined it. There was a hole on one side of the pouch where the key had to be inserted. He had the foresight to bring the key along. He had sent Hedwig, after much cajoling, to Gringotts yesterday evening.

He read the small pamphlet which Mundungus had brought along. Then he inserted the key and turned it around and heard a faint click. There was also a knob with a dial around it. He turned it around to increase or decrease the amount to withdraw. Satisfied, he pushed the knob in and heard the clinking of coins in the pouch. Mundungus seemed to be jumping in excitement and greed at the jingle of coins in the pouch. He extracted the ten galleons and handed them over to Mundungus who literally snatched them and disappeared with a "Nice doin' business with you."

Harry just rolled his eyes. On the pouch he also found another knob which gave him the option to exchange galleons for other currency. _Nice. _He pocketed the pouch and began his run.

***B***

Harry dragged his legs back to his relatives place, completely exhausted with today's training and disappointed with his non-performance. He met no success in his apparition training today, still finding it difficult to apparate while standing still. He got weary real quick after his unsuccessful attempts and the rest of the time was used up making potions. Then he ended up spraining his arm, reducing his already limited workout. The remainder of his workout period was spent watching others toil.

His 'post session', as he had started calling it, was even more fruitless. With his concentration haywire, he fared worse in his 'dodge ball' training as compared to yesterday. On the other hand Lance didn't seem bogged down by the lack of improvement and had just smiled whenever Harry failed, as if mocking him. If it was just to get on Harry's nerves, Lance was doing a good job. Lance didn't even give any words of encouragement seeing the distraught expression on his face.

All in all, it was a bad day. _It was about to get much worse_.

He opened the door to find his aunt waiting for him in the doorway of the sitting room looking at him with an odd expression. Trying not to make any eye contact he quickly ascended the stairs.

"Harry... wait! Please!" Aunt Petunia beseeched with a small voice. Harry was surprised enough to freeze on the steps after being addressed with softness from the least expected person, but he didn't turn around.

"I just... just wanted to... say that... that I'm... sorry." The last part was a soft whisper but Harry heard it alright.

This was enough to crumble whatever control he had maintained over his anger. Clenching his fist, he turned around and let out what he had been holding down all his childhood. "Sorry? Do you even know the meaning of that word? And what are you sorry for? And what's the point for asking for forgiveness now after all has been said and done? Is it because you just realized that you were being _paid_ for looking after me and that you failed to do your _job_ you were being paid for? Does it even matter now?" The words that left Harry's mouth were laced with venom, causing his aunt to flinch, as if being stung by his words. He didn't even care. He was going to remove all his anger and frustration on her.

With renewed fury he went on. "Look at me!" Aunt Petunia automatically obeyed Harry's order, lifting her reddened eyes to meet his green ones. "What do you see? Do you see a hero, a saviour, the salvation of the world? Do you see a strong and powerful person? If you see such a thing, then you must be _blind_. Words like weak, starved, neglected, unloved sound better in describing me. And do you know what? I am _fated_ to vanquish the darkness that threatens to consume the whole world. Not just my world, both the worlds. There were never any two worlds in the first place. We have lived in the shadows to save ourselves from the prejudice and intolerance that you would have treated us with, which _you _have so proven. If I fail, the world will cease to exist for you; you would either be killed or enslaved. So the world's fate depends upon me. _How tragically anticlimactic_." Though he had said 'world' but that was not exactly accurate. However, Harry knew that if his country fell, the effect might snowball all over the world since the maximum wizarding population resided here.

Harry's throat had dried up, the pain was unbearable. But he couldn't stop. His Aunt was sobbing, but he didn't even notice. He was blinded with rage, with anguish. "And do you know what? I didn't even hate you lot for all the trash you dished out at me. Instead, I hated myself! I hated myself for being a burden, for causing you grief. I... I thought I deserved what I got; at least you were providing a roof over my head and food to live on. I... had a silly little hope that if I behaved and obeyed you, you... will end up... loving me, the way you love your... son. How naive I was since that day never came. I..." Harry was shaking badly, his voice was cracking up, but he couldn't stop the flood of emotions. His breathing was irregular and he was having difficulty speaking clearly. His knees were trembling and he had to hold on the railing for support. He had to release his grief and his aunt seemed to be the unfortunate one. "I... only craved for a little love and respect. Was it so... so hard to give? I had to look elsewhere for what I needed, which my blood had failed to provide. I have lost my... my parents, my godfather and my mentor, and all the people I care about are marked for death. Do you know how... how it feels to stand helplessly and watch others fall, to watch others sacrificing their lives for you? I... I feel haunted, cursed, damned! How much could I bear? I am only a human and each human has a breaking point. I had breached this point a long time ago. I... I would have taken my... life a long while ago, but I stopped myself only... I... you... "

Harry was spent, completely. His voice had deserted him and he felt a lump form in his throat; his heart ached in agony. He had more to say but didn't have the energy to voice it. Without even glancing at his broken aunt, he stumbled to his room and flopped on the bed. He brought his knees together, wrapped his hands around them and he put his head down on his knees. He wanted to cry, to release the pain but fate was being so cruel on him that it didn't allow it. It was as if he had dried from the inside. He was exhausted in all possible ways imaginable. Strangely though, he was feeling lighter, as if the hand which had been squeezing his heart had finally released it.

The door to his room creaked and with a knock his aunt requested in a defeated voice, "Can I... can I come in?" Harry didn't respond. After waiting for a few minutes, she let herself in and just stood there in the room, unable to decide what to do. Finally, she took the only chair in the room and faced Harry's still form.

After composing herself or rather, trying to think up what to say, she began. "Harry... I... I don't know what to say. I have been so wrong. I have no excuse for my actions and no apology from me would be sufficient enough to heal your wounds that I have given you. And the worst thing is, I knew what I was doing but my hatred overwhelmed any misgivings I had. Please don't blame my family, it's entirely my fault. It was I who poisoned their minds with lies and hatred. I... I hated you for reasons which were so feeble, so insignificant. No, I never detested my sister. I loved Lily, with all my heart and soul. I loved her so much that I became possessive of her. So much that I began to hate anything that took her away from me. James took away my sister and they both ended up dead. He had taken my sister away from me and I was left behind. I hated him because he caused her death. My hatred was so intense that I couldn't differentiate between you and your father. I felt that I was punishing James, while you bore the brunt of it all. There was another person whom I hated as much as your father. When we were young, he pulled my sister away from me with his little bag of tricks."

Harry looked up. He had been listening all along but didn't have it in him to respond or acknowledge. He didn't care. But he wanted to know who had accompanied his mother during her childhood and also shared the hatred of his aunt. He didn't know much about her, let alone her early days as a child.

Misinterpreting her nephew's actions, she pushed on. "Yes, I abhorred him, the boy from next door. He ignored me completely, his attention focused on my sister alone. My sister hardly talked to me when he was around. He was the one who told Lily that she was a... witch. I hated him for that as well. I can't remember his name, but I do remember how he looked. He had oily hair, a pale face and yes... a hooked nose."

_Oily hair, pale face, hooked nose! No, it can't be!_

"Really gave me the creeps. My sister enjoyed his company more than mine; my anger had no bounds... Wait! I think... I think I remember his last name!"

_Please no! Please not him!_

"It was Snape."


	9. Healing Wounds

A/N: Sorry guys. My PC stopped working. Had to replace the hard disk and hence rewrite the whole chapter. I found it rather difficult redoing the chapter which turned out to be rather different in the end. I will make up for delay with quick updates. Enjoy!

(Thanks for your support **redstickbonbon**)

* * *

Healing Wounds

* * *

Harry looked blankly at his aunt, who seemed to be rambling on about her hate for that _greasy git_. However, the expression on his face was just an illusion compared to the turmoil his emotions were in.

He was not ready to accept it. His aunt wasn't lying but still he couldn't accept that the person he hated vehemently, second only to Voldermort, was once a friend of his mother. Best friend according to his aunt. Even the thought made him sick.

Even if it was true, how on earth did he end up on the dark side? How could he turn against his childhood friend and let loose Voldermort on them? Why did Snape hate him so much if he was the progeny of his friend? These fruitless questions were trying to pierce his mind even though he realized that only Snape could answer them. However, Harry would rather speak with his wand if Snape comes in front of him.

"… made my life a living hell." Aunt Petunia paused her babbling to take a long breath. Her clouded eyes focused on Harry, as if just realizing that he was in the room as well. "I… I am sorry. I kind of strayed from what I was planning to tell you." She straightened her back and with a determined look in her eyes and said "I know that apology through mere words is not enough. While you are here, I will do everything in my power to make you feel at home." She stood up, looked around the room and then finally at Harry and with fierce intensity in her eyes she pledged "I promise." He had to believe her. She left, closing the door silently behind her.

Harry sighed and lay down on his bed. It took nearly seventeen years to bring about a change in his aunt. That was only after his proclamation of the dark truth. Did his words have so much effect on her?

_Let's see how long can Aunt Petunia hold onto her promise._

***B***

With a mind tired by the nightmarish slumber and a body drained by emotional torture, Harry made his way down towards the kitchen to have his breakfast before he left for his morning run.

He stopped at the doorway of kitchen, shocked at what he saw at dining table. A warm glass of milk, a sandwich and neatly cut apple slices were waiting for him on the table. His aunt was nowhere in sight. It looked freshly made so her aunt had prepared it just before he came down. He sat down and enjoyed his breakfast which was a healthy improvement over his cold meals.

Last night she had brought his dinner to his room since Harry didn't come downstairs. Harry, who was lying on the bed, found his nostrils filled with a delicious aroma of the food. However, he didn't acknowledge the presence of his aunt or his meal. She kept the plate on his study table, told him that she has brought his dinner and left. He tried to restrain himself, but his rumbling stomach overpowered him and he dug into his rather scrumptious meal which rivalled what he had in his school.

After washing up, he left for his morning run.

***B***

Harry was literally dragging his feet behind him. Another hectic day. He stood at the door but made no move to knock. The expectations that he had set for himself from his training were too high to reach. He was progressing at a snail's pace. He was feeling rather disappointed with himself.

His gloomy thoughts were interrupted by the opening door. Aunt Petunia was looking at him with concern. "Are you alright?"

Harry didn't answer and tried to find a way to go to his room but his Aunt who was blocking the door, refused to budge. "Is Dudley's trainer overworking you?" Aunt Petunia questioned after taking in his exhausted look. "I will have a word him about it. You don't need to work there. You-"

"I am fine." Harry interrupted, too fatigued to argue. "I am just tired due to the workout."

His aunt's eyes widened with realization. "Oh! I forgot." She moved back allowing Harry to squeeze in through the gap.

When he opened the door to his room, he nearly stumbled back in astonishment. He even supposed that he might have entered his cousin's room but that thought was rejected after seeing the glinting cage hanging in the window.

The room was so clean that Harry had to squint to look at his shining room. Alright, that was a slight exaggeration but his room was very clean indeed. It looked as if a layer of dirt had been peeled off the furniture and the floor. His bed was made with new sheets; the mirror on the cupboard was gleaming and seemed to reflect light completely. Hedwig's cage was spotless waiting for her to return. The windows were spotless, sunlight pouring through them in abundance. His cousin's abandoned stuff was removed giving him the feeling that his room was magically enlarged. The room had a comfortable glow which replaced the dark and damp feeling he had in his room earlier.

Without realizing, Harry found himself standing in the middle of the room, lost in the radiance of his room.

"Do you like it?" Harry turned around to find his aunt at the doorway, looking at him with anticipation. If she was waiting for his gratitude, she would have to be disappointed since none was forthcoming. However, he did nod in response. She at least deserved the acknowledgment since it would have taken a lot of effort on her part to bring about the change. He was not evil after all.

Looking more closely at his aunt, he found her to be rather tired which clashed with her satisfied expression. There were some bandages on her hand as well. He couldn't stop himself from asking. "Did you hurt your hands?" He tried to hide the concern in his voice but failed.

"Oh!" Aunt looking down at her hands and then back at him. "It's nothing really. The owl was rather nippy when I approached the cage. I had to let it out."

Harry turned his back to her to hide the apologetic look in his eyes. "I am sorry." Harry had to say it.

"It's alright. Please come down for dinner." And she was gone.

***B***

The dinner was quiet, only tinkering spoons and plates could be heard. However, the silence was rather comfortable, at least for Harry. He ate quietly, his plate being refilled by her aunt. He thought Uncle Vernon would say something to that but he was ignoring him completely. _Fine by me,_ Harry thought. On the other hand, Dudley was shooting him angry looks with a hint of jealousy. Harry just smiled back with a smug look. He was having fun, no doubt. After dinner, Harry cleaned the plates to show his gratitude, and went back upstairs to his room.

Before he could begin his daily routine, the door opened. He turned around expecting his aunt but found his fuming cousin at the door. Dudley looked around the room in surprise but then focused back on Harry.

"Don't you know to knock before entering _my_ room?" Harry chastised with a glint of humour in his eyes.

"It is _my _room not yours. My stuff-" Dudley looked around the room with alarm. "Where is my stuff?"

"What stuff?" Harry's mouth quivered at its sides and a smile escaped him.

"You… what did you do to my things?" Dudley advanced towards him raging eyes but stopped when Harry's hand went to his pocket. "You can't… can't use it. You will be expelled."

Ignoring Dudley's advice, Harry took out his wand and rolled it in his hands causing a gasp to escape from his cousin who took a step back. "Ask your mother if you want to know what happened with your stupid things."

"Mum? She did it?" Harry could almost hear the gears moving, rather slowly, in his cousin's mind. Some oiling was needed, Harry mused. Dudley raised his chubby finger and pointed at his cousin. "You! You must have done something to her! My mum has been acting strange lately. It must be your… your hocus pocus!"

"As you said earlier, I cannot do _magic _in fear of being expelled." Harry pointed out, enjoying the wild-eyed look on his cousin who was trying to throw back a response.

He was saved from it by a voice from behind him. "Dudley, what are you doing here?" Aunt Petunia questioned her son who looked surprised by the slight hardness in her voice. Harry however noticed fear as well, possibly due to the wand he was holding. She feared for her son being harmed by him. That thought really riled him up, but he said nothing.

"He… he has done something to you." Dudley tried to convince his mother but seemed unsuccessful since the expression on Aunt Petunia didn't change.

"Come with me." She ordered forcefully, practically dragging him from his room. Commendable achievement if the size of his cousin was something to go by.

Harry went back to his routine, unfazed by the interruption.

***B***

Harry was standing in a clothes shop, a deep frown lingering on his forehead. The frown was not due to choices in front of him but the company he had. Aunt Petunia. That was enough to describe the distressing situation he was in. On the other hand, his aunt was rather enjoying herself, bustling around and fussing over him. She was acting like Mrs Weasley, much to Harry's annoyance. He was wondering how he ended up here.

After he had come from his training, his aunt had suggested that they both go shop for some new clothes in a new store opened around the corner. He would have had said no but seeing that it was _required _of him to buy new clothes and then there was the pleading look in his aunt's eyes, he gave in. The sense of relief and happiness which his aunt showed at his approval made Harry smile, discreetly. Now, he just wished he had said 'no'.

At the moment, his aunt had dozens of clothes in her hand and was asking him to try them. If it had been left up to him, he would have just picked clothes of his size randomly and left. His refusals didn't seem to have any effect on his aunt who kept on insisting, until he relented. He found that the clothes were of good taste but seemed slightly larger than his size. When questioning his aunt of her choice, she said "I will ensure that you fit your clothes before you leave for your school."

"You mean fatten me. Like Dudley?" Harry asked an innocent look. At aunt Petunia's nod he said with an edge to his voice. "No thanks. I have no plans to roll around like a large football."

"My son is not fat!" his aunt argued with an affronted look which relaxed into a sheepish smile. "Maybe a little."

Harry burst out laughing at the _feeble _admission. His aunt joined the laughter, surprising him. Not because she was laughing, but they were laughing together. If someone had told him that such a situation would occur, he would have been glad to deposit that person at St. Mungo's for a mental check-up.

After two hours of fussing and fretting, Harry finally escaped the store promising himself that he would never go shopping again. Especially with his aunt. She had paid for the clothes, insisting that it was her job. Took her a lot of time to realize that, but Harry didn't voice his thoughts. It seemed that all the trouble he had to go through to get that withdrawal pouch from Gringotts was a waste of time. Not exactly a waste, since it might come in handy in the future, but Harry was too occupied to realize it.

He was occupied due to the next task at hand. He was going to buy lenses to replace his glasses. _Why?_ Because they _broke_ while he was walking down the stairs. It was really a lame excuse but his aunt bought it. Lance told him that she would, which annoyed Harry since he found the reason quiet feeble and told him so. He could just imagine the gloating and the smugness he will have to endure. Lance didn't really waste a chance to rub him the wrong way.

Now why the sudden need for broken glasses? Harry was not impressed by this strange request from his trainer at first but had to grudgingly admit to the sound reasoning that followed it. Lance argued his point stating that his glasses were a liability in a battle and could easily blind him in many ways. Also they would not work well with his masked counterpart. After Harry's silent agreement, Lance suggested breaking his glasses as a ruse to purchase lenses, since without performing magic he couldn't repair them. Harry was not too pleased with that since he was not keen on parting with the thing that identified him as being 'Harry Potter'. Also the glasses seemed to add to the resemblance to his father. However, the feelings for such an inanimate object were quashed after his resolute mind took over. The frame bent in a twisted angle and a cracked glass was the state of his glasses. He was responsible for it. He hated manipulation but he ended up doing it.

So there he was, purchasing lenses in an eye care center which also somehow turned out to be in the vicinity. Aunt Petunia was more than happy to oblige to his request as she was trying to grab at any opportunity that came her way to please Harry. Harry tried not to feel guilty about taking advantage of his aunt's indulgence in his care. He did offer to purchase them himself but his aunt couldn't take no for an answer. He could feel the pouch stored in the dark corner of his cupboard, complaining about not being used.

They left the center, one was happy with his improved eyesight and the other slightly ashamed, eyes downcast. The optician had berated aunt Petunia for not giving proper care to Harry's eyes since the glasses had insufficient vision correction. Harry was surprised by the sharpness it gave and the vivid detail his eyes could feed on. He observed the surroundings with renewed vigour, drinking in the clarity. His eyes felt relaxed after ten years of straining to gain focus. He had previously assumed that slight blurriness in his vision was normal but now he realized the truth.

He rather enjoyed it when his aunt was on the receiving end of the reprimand. However, the shame that her aunt felt made him realize that her aunt had changed for the better. He was silently grateful for it. He would not have survived another two months of hostility and contempt.

They silently walked back to number 4 Privet Drive. However, the uncomfortable silence was short-lived.

"I want you to do something for me." Harry didn't turn to look at her, but slowed down to match his step with hers. "Please stay away from Dudley; try to avoid him."

Harry stopped to look at his aunt with hurtful eyes which she met with a confused expression. "You don't trust me? You think I will hurt your son?" Harry seethed, unable to hide the pain. He thought his aunt had changed. It was something too good to ask, he realized.

Sudden realization dawned on Aunt Petunia who exclaimed with wide eyes. "No! On the contrary, I was trying to make sure you don't get hurt." At the disbelieving look she received, she pushed on. "I know you will never hurt my son, any of my family. I have seen you grow up and no matter how we have treated you; I know that you will not hurt us. You had saved my son from the dementors. If there was someone else in your place, he would have run without turning back. You had carried him home but at that time I had been so worried about him that I had overlooked your actions. Also, the blood protection which shields you also has my family under its cover." She paused to take a breather. "I only want you stay away from Dudley is because I don't trust my son in stopping himself from hurting you physically as he has done on more than one occasion." Aunt Petunia winced at the realization at what she was saying. She was aware of the bullying Harry had to face but had taken no steps to stop it. She went on. "I don't want you to be forced to defend yourself resulting in your expulsion. I know that you prefer staying in Hogwarts than here. What am I saying? Anyone would prefer that if they had to undergo the treatment that we dished out. I cannot say in words of how sorry I am. If only I could go back and undo my mistakes but life is not easy. It seems I will have to live with my blunders." A slight pained expression passed her face; the remorseful eyes were filled with tears. "I feel as if my sins are punishing me, slowly eating me away until nothing is left. I feel like I am drowning in my sorrow, gasping for breath, looking for a hand to pull me out. However, none is forthcoming and the depressing air over me is pushing me in. I…" Aunt Petunia paused and looked at Harry with surprise.

Harry was holding her hand. His actions were involuntary, so were his soft words. "You have my hand." He let go of her hand and made his way to his destination. She was shocked by his words. Was he even human? How could anyone be so compassionate? She didn't deserve his forgiveness. It seemed rather fantastic that the person she wronged in every way possible was supporting her in the fight for redemption. His aunt wiped her tears and followed him with determination. Determined to care for him as his own child.

***B***

Harry made an important discovery. This was during one of his daily Pensieve visits.

Harry had found something rather peculiar which he had missed out on earlier; he was so caught up in the pain this memory caused him that he didn't notice it.

It was the memory of the day Dumbledore died. On close inspection, he found that Dumbledore's wand was missing when he had found his body. Did the death eaters take the wand? Was that why they took the trouble to come to Hogwarts? And how did his wand end up with Lance? Which wand did they take? He saw that wand Dumbledore was using that day was indeed his real wand. So what happened with the wand they took?

Harry started to get a headache after assaulting his brain with questions he had no answers of. He pushed them to the back of the mind, planning to ask Lance about it the first chance he gets.

***B***

"How do I look?"

"Different" was the rather _insightful_ opinion Harry got from his trainer. "Take them off."

"Why?" Harry asked, stumped at this odd request. After all, he had to go through loads of trouble to get them. Lance retrieved a small container, the size of a match box, with slanted carvings over it and held it towards Harry. He found another pair of lenses in the container.

At Harry's questioning looks Lance told him "It was never my plan to let you wear muggle lenses. The ones you are holding now are charmed ones with helpful abilities."

"Like what?"

"Improved vision" Harry just rolled his eyes. "Enchanted with anti-summoning charms." Harry nodded in acceptance but Lance was not done. "Night vision and finally the ability to see under clothes." Lance wagged his eyes suggestively.

"You got to be joking?" Harry exclaimed with mock disbelief, realizing instantly that it was another gag.

"I am rather good at it." Lance replied with a smug look.

"Night vision would be awesome." Harry noticed with excitement.

"Umm… that was a joke as well." Lance stated with a straight face.

"I figured as much. It was too good to be true." Harry had a dejected look.

***B***

Harry studied himself in the now clean mirror and sighed. He couldn't see much difference from what he saw ten days ago. The bones were still jutting out, covered with a thin layer of skin. He winced at how his reflection looked back at him. Who was he kidding; he didn't expect to grow some muscles overnight. However, the lack of change in his both physical and magical potential was rather discouraging and left him doubting himself and the trust held by both his late headmaster and Lance.

What grated on his mind more was his failure in the magical part of his training. He saw no improvement in himself. In fact, he found that he was faring worse each day as the days progressed. Even a hint of improvement would have satisfied him but he was greatly disappointed in not even finding that. Lance seemed oblivious about his lack of improvement which really drove Harry up the wall. Unable to hold back his frustration, Harry let it out during one of the sessions.

Harry was being mercilessly battered and bruised by the _damn _balls. It seemed the balls were getting faster and coming at him quicker each day. Or was it that his reflexes were going down the hill?

After it ended, Harry slowly made his way to Lance with a defeated look on his face. Lance on the other hand, had a wide smile on him, to Harry's annoyance. "That went well. Right, now let's-"

Harry had enough and this pushed him off the cliff. "Went well? WENT WELL?!" Harry yelled, interrupting Lance. "How did you figure that one out? I would have thought I did rubbish. At least tell me the truth. That I-"

"Enough!" Lance ordered sharply, cutting down Harry's complaining. "You think you have not improved? Let me enlighten you with the facts which you have so carelessly overlooked. You are now lasting twice the time during your workouts compared to when you had started training. Your apparition without the twist, though not perfect yet, has been successful in terms of your landing. You are not falling down anymore and managing to land on your two feet. You are lasting longer while learning to apparate as well. You have managed to brew all the required potions perfectly. The dodge training was getting difficult because I was tuning the machines to throw the balls at you at much faster and quicker pace each day. Today, they have been working at their maximum potential and even then you somehow managed to dodge half of the balls. You are human after all. The progress you have made is three times faster compared to the subjects who underwent the same training. It took them nearly a month, half of them quitting midway, after losing a part of their memory that is. You have persevered through the difficult phase where the improvements were rather marginal. I hid your progress from you, trying to test you limits; you didn't disappoint me. You are a fighter and I am rather proud to be your trainer. However, you were so overwhelmed by your failures that you didn't notice your growth. You are not living a tale wherein you become powerful overnight. This is reality. If you want to give yourself a fair chance to succeed, never expect too much too soon. Gaining strength is a slow process and you should do well to remember that."

Harry was speechless through this announcement and only managed to nod. He silently rebuked himself after his rather rude outburst.

"Earlier, I was going to tell you about what you would do next before I was rudely interrupted." Lance threw him a pointed look to which Harry ducked his head in shame. "Since you have finished with potion making, we will move to Healing charms." Lance waited for a response from Harry but he only nodded. "I don't think I need to impress on you the importance of it."

"The potions do have the same effect as healing charms, don't they?" Harry asked with an even voice trying to get over his embarrassment.

"Not exactly. Potions are slow acting and their use is limited to the quantity you have whereas the healing charms use your magical reserve to heal your body."

"I don't know... I don't think I would be too good at it." Harry said unconvincingly.

"You can't judge yourself if you haven't tried to learn them yet." Without waiting for Harry's acknowledgement he continued. "Healing charms are difficult to master but I am sure you will do fine. What with your saving people thing." Lance smiled at Harry's wide-eyed expression.

"How am I going to practice it anyway?" Harry countered, realizing that if he had to practice healing charms, it had to be on someone injured.

"I have everything planned." Saying which, Lance dragged a nondescript chest from the corner to the centre of the room.

"Do I even want to know what's in it?" Harry asked, his heart filled with apprehension at what he would see. Lance just shot him mysterious smile and opened the chest.

What Harry saw completely blew his mind. All the blood drained from his face and his knees started to wobble.

In the chest, Harry found amputated human hands and legs covered with dried red blood, the nauseating smell nearly causing Harry to lose his breakfast.

"You will be working on these." Lance shot a triumphant look at Harry's traumatized countenance.


	10. Warrior in the Making

A/N: Two chapters in two days, yeah I don't have a life…

* * *

Warrior in the Making

* * *

There was chaos all around. Wails and screams were interrupted by occasional merciless laughter. Around a hundred masked men wearing black robes were wielding their wands to cause as much pain and destruction as humanely possible. They weren't humans though. They were death eaters; the harbingers of death. Dead bodies, raging fire and destruction were left in their wake.

Suddenly, there was a wave of energy that radiated around them and then there was a silent addition to their numbers. The others however, were unaware of this addition and attributed the magical intensity to the frenzy they were in.

The newcomer was unlike any of them. He was not wearing a mask and had a blue cloak on him. His unkempt hair and intense green eyes completed his description. He silently pulled out two wands, one in each hand and ordered in a strong voice. "Stop!"

He had not yelled but the shock wave that followed immobilized every wand carrier, some even tumbled and fell. The air crackled with raw magical power, a brilliant white glow could be seen around the person who spoke.

He raised his wands, and whirled around in a wide arc throwing curses with such rapid speed that it almost felt like a single thread of unending curse. Before the masked men could comprehend the situation and retaliate, they found themselves stunned, paralyzed or even dead.

The green-eyed boy smiled with morbid satisfaction and drawled "That was no fun. Can't anyone fight back?" He taunted at the fallen men, knowing full well that they couldn't respond.

"I can." a voice hissed from behind him.

He turned around to face his mortal enemy who was observing him through his snake-like eyes, wand held loosely at his side as if to mock his opponent.

"We will see about that." The green-eyed boy shot back, bringing up his wands at the ready, no trace of fear in his voice. However snake eyes surprised him by dropping his own wand and throwing a punch at the green-eyed boy, who was too shocked to move out of the way. He fell back and closed his eyes at the dull pain he felt on his cheek. _Weird!_ He thought that a punch would have hurt more. And why the hell was snake eyes resorting to muggle fighting?

Out of nowhere he heard a voice. _His mother's voice!_ But she was dead, wasn't she? "Get up. You need to run." She was shaking him by his shoulders.

He tried to open his eyes but his eyelids refused to budge. "No mum, I don't want to."

"Mum?" There was so much surprise in her voice that it compelled him to open his eyes. He found his aunt looking down at him with a look that had a mixture of shock and concern. He suddenly realized that he was in his room. So it was just a dream. A weird dream that is.

"I think you forgot to set your alarm… Were you dreaming?" It was so painfully obvious but he still nodded realizing that her aunt was trying to make small talk to diffuse the tense atmosphere in the room. His throat had dried up and his mind was still clouded with that strange dream. "Was it one of your nightmares that you usually have?" At the penetrating gaze that he shot at her, she defended herself. "It's not exactly a secret. I mean your cries during the night have woken me several times." At Harry's apologetic look she quickly added "It is not your fault. You must have very painful memories, mostly due to our behaviour towards you." Aunt Petunia looked away, trying to hide the shame and remorse she felt.

"No, it was not a nightmare; just a normal dream." Harry assured her. _Yeah, normal._

Still not looking at him, she said "Why… why did you call out 'mum'? Were you dreaming about her?"

"Not exactly. I thought I heard my mother calling out to me. Now I see that it was actually you who was telling me to get up and go for the morning run." Harry explained with a small smile but his aunt had a frown on her face.

"You were so small when she died, you couldn't have remembered how she sounded. Then how could you take my voice as my sister's?" His aunt asked with a confused look.

Harry paused to think about whether to share his memories with her or not. In the end, he relented since she had a right to know about her sister. "I… I have nightmares. The day my… my parents died, my mother… died defending me. Her cries to save me haunt me to this day. How can I ever forget her voice?" Harry barely whispered, his reddened eyes meeting his aunt's. They looked at each other, sharing the pain for their loss.

"Thank you for sharing that with me. I know it must have very difficult for you." Aunt Petunia patted one of his shoulder and they drifted into silence. Realizing that his nephew was rather forthcoming at the moment, she asked him with an uncertain voice. "You remember the day when you made me realize my mistakes. You had told me things that I guess you would never have said if you were not under such stress. Is it… is it fine if I ask you something about it?"

He looked at her briefly and nodded, then looked away. It had been more than a month since that day. He vaguely remembered what he had said. He had even let slip the prophecy but had worded it slightly differently.

But why did he agree to her questioning? It was because now he could call her 'aunt' in the truest sense of the word. They had mended their relationship in a way that he could never have imagined. Come to think of it, he had rather enjoyed his stay at the Dursleys. Uncle Vernon ignored him most of the time, but the rare times when they interacted, the venom was usually missing. Dudley had changed as well, acting with civility and politeness that Harry never thought he possessed. His cousin even thanked him for saving his life two years. However, they were not on speaking terms exactly, since Dudley was incapable of having a conversation and Harry was not too keen to know who he had bullied each day.

However, with his aunt, he could talk freely. He had told her about Hogwarts and his friends, rather briefly though, without broaching any emotional or personal topics. He had been surprised to learn his aunt knew a lot about Hogwarts as well. She had even confessed about sending a letter to the headmaster to request her admission, which was politely declined, much to her chagrin. Harry had a good laugh at that. Initially, Harry feared that she would act like Mrs Weasley; not that he hated how his best friend's mother behaved but he was rather uncomfortable with all the mothering and hugging. However, his aunt acted differently. She somehow knew what he was feeling and left him alone when required. It really felt good when his own blood provided him the emotional support that he needed. He had been also spending time with her aunt, helping her out in chores, much to her delight.

He had also received telephone calls from Hermione, who kept asking questions about how he was and how was he feeling. Harry had smiled at her concern and just gave one worded responses only to get her aggravated. Hermione had soon realized his game, making out the smiling voice at the other end. She had informed him that she would return just before his birthday which now was three days away. She was very happy about how his relatives had treated him this time around. At that moment she was in Africa with her parents.

All in all, he had a great last few weeks in Privet drive that almost hid the pain and suffering he had endured. Almost. He could finally say that he was leaving his _home _to start afresh.

His aunt's voice broke through his thoughts. "You had told me that… that only you could defeat the dark side. Is that true?" She didn't want it to be but the defeated nod of his nephew realized her true fears. "But what about Dumbledore? As far as I know, he is one of the strongest wizards that you have. Isn't it his responsibility?" She fought back.

"He is dead." Harry stated nonchalantly with a blank face.

Aunt Petunia's hands covered her mouth and uttered a muffled "No! Oh no!" She seemed to be taking it harder than Harry anticipated. "This cannot be. How can everyone else stand back and leave you to fight their battles? Is there no one else who can do it? You are only a… a child." Her voice cracked up with concern and worry.

"I have to do what needs to be done." Harry declared with such finality and resolve that his aunt engulfed him in a loose hug.

"You are very brave boy. I wish…" Harry knew what she wished for. He patted her back, rather awkwardly, trying to comfort her. He realized how comical the situation was if not for the grim melancholy that hovered over them.

***B***

Harry smiled at him and he smiled back with an identical grin. Of course it was identical since he was looking in the mirror at his own reflection. He had refrained to examine his body as had been advised by Lance. Now he realized why. He could definitely see an improvement. He still looked thin but his bones were hardly visible. A hint of muscular lines were beginning to form all over his arms and abdomen. Even though the improvement was marginal he felt slightly confident that he could improve further. He could feel the strength coursing through his body which he attributed to the strict training regime. The healthy food along with the extra helpings that his aunt fed him also helped. At least his stomach was happy.

He took his breakfast, which seemed to have increased twofold to meet his body requirement, and made is way to garden.

While running around the garden, he thought back at the past few weeks. The training he received from Lance was interesting. Well, interesting was a weak word. _Out of the world_ suited it perfectly though. The healing charms training started on a rather shocking note. What with realizing that he had to work on corpses. Lance had ended up laughing hysterically at Harry's horror-struck expression and after controlling his laughter, he explained that they were just props obtained from St Mungo's and the blood and the smell were his doing. How _evil_ of him. What followed after that had left Harry doubting his trainer's sanity. Or his own.

***B***

After satisfying Lance about the improvement he showed in the dodge training, he was rudely awakened from his contentment when he was informed that it was only the first stage. The next stage included him standing in the middle of the room surrounded by the three machines arranged in a triangle. That proved rather difficult since his back was always facing one of the machines. After somehow getting the hang of it, Lance told him with a cruel smile, or that's what he imagined, that the last stage involved working in dim light. That was pure torture; he could hardly make out the oncoming balls which hit him ruthlessly. The only positive was that his contact lenses did in fact improve his vision slightly in the dim light. He was still struggling with this last stage at the moment.

***B***

They both were sitting opposite each other with a square board in the middle having sixty four black and white squares with small figurines standing in some of them. They were playing chess, for some unknown reason that Harry couldn't even fathom. Lance insisted on playing it and refused to hear any complaining on Harry's part. He didn't have much liking for this game anyway.

After spectacularly losing four games on the trot, Harry sighed and pleaded for an explanation. Lance looked like he would deny it but gave in, much to Harry's relief. "You are greatly underestimating the importance in what we are doing. Winning a battle is not just about brute power and strength; it actually involves a lot of strategizing and careful planning. And you have many battles ahead of you and hence you need to adapt accordingly to have the upper hand. Don't take this as a game; take it as a real fight where each piece is a member of your army."

"And sacrifice them to win the battle? I would never do that." Harry shot back, appalled at what was required of him. Harry thought back at what had happened in his first year where the situation was very similar. This was during their adventure under Hogwarts to protect the Philosopher's stone. Ron had sacrificed himself in a game of chess, literally, to win the game but at that moment Ron was in control and Harry was too young to see the implications. Now however, if put in the same scenario, Harry would not let Ron or anyone else for that matter, put themselves willingly in the line of fire.

"Don't be naïve." Lance reproached. "Do you really think that this is your own fight? That everyone is going to stand back and watch you play your little game? No matter how strong you are, you will still be weak if you don't have support. Same goes for Voldemort as well. Guiding your army will ensure better survivability as compared to leaving them alone to their own musings. Taking difficult decisions are part and parcel of a battle."

Harry took this all in but still wasn't ready to accept it, no matter how true it was. He moved his knight to take out the pawn, instantly realizing that he had made a mistake after his knight was removed by the enemy bishop. "Why are we playing muggle chess?"

"You mean apart from taking out your laziness?" Lance shot him a teasing smile. "There is a hidden meaning to it. You need to make an effort to guide your pieces at your behest. They will not just follow your blind orders. You need to build a sense of trust and leadership to achieve the control of your pieces. You need to prove your worth in their eyes. You do realize what I am trying to say, don't you?"

Harry nodded. _That was rather deep, _Harry thought with a stifled chuckle earning him a frown from his trainer.

***B***

Harry was elated. Finally. Lance was going to teach him how to improve his spell casting. After a bit of lecture about what he was going to learn, which Lance drawled at a very slow pace to annoy Harry, Harry found himself facing a round target with concentric circles held by a stand with a belt on it; the target was at the farthest sides of the room from where he was standing. There was a rectangular display above the target as well.

"This training is to improve your accuracy and speed of spell casting." Lance instructed. "Use the stinging hex to hit the target. It reacts to magic and depending on how close you hit the centre of the target, the higher will be your score. However, the more hits you get the score increases quickly but might affect your accuracy. You have sixty seconds. Ready! ... Begin!"

After a minute, the magically exhausted student looked at the score and then at his trainer. Lance was referring to a clipboard in his hands and then looked up at Harry with a grin. "That was good. No wonder you are good at duelling. The score you achieved puts you at 47th rank out of some hundred subjects which underwent the same test. Also, they were all adults, so your performance comparatively is commendable. However, there is a room for improvement. You need to correct your stance to increase your speed of casting along with casting spells non-verbally and reducing wand movement."

He seemed to move ahead in leaps and bounds in this training and the score nearly doubled within two weeks. He wasn't able to cast the spells non-verbally but he did manage to sufficiently reduce his wand movement.

The next stage of this training involved him to shoot hexes at four targets, which surrounded him while he was in the centre, one after another. That was rather difficult and made him slightly nauseous with all the turning around to hit each target. He was still stuck in this stage of training since the improvement was only marginal.

Lance also had given him a book, if you could call it that, with loose pages stapled together containing a long list of useful spells along with their wand movements and estimated magical reserve requirements, which he had Harry go through. He had read them over so many times with so much hunger that could have even put Hermione to shame.

***B***

He had finally managed to successfully apparate without the twist while still maintaining his balance. Lance told him that now he needed to maintain a silencing charm over himself while trying to apparate to silence the usual popping noise, which proved even more difficult. He had to time the spell at the same moment as he was going to apparate. As per Lance, this was because the charm could only hold back noise over an area, not on someone's body. After relentless training over two weeks he had successfully mastered it as well.

Lance informed him that now he had to learn to conceal his presence completely after apparating, that is visually as well. "The disillusionment charm can be used to mask your apparition preventing detection. Make no mistake; this charm is not perfect since you would give away your location if you move while under this charm. Same goes for _most _magical cloaks. Yours however, is an exception though." Lance added with a knowing look. "But magical cloaks greatly impede one's movement in battle and hence should be avoided."

Although the charm was easy to cast, but it turned out to be ten times more demanding while trying to maintain it, which he managed for only a few seconds. And this was even before he could practice apparating along with this charm. He had a lot of work to do in this field.

***B***

Lance had also went through a few muggle fighting techniques which was a combination of boxing and karate, namely kick boxing. This was to ensure maximum usage of the body while fighting.

Harry didn't actually practice it, much to his disappointment. Lance had said, rather bluntly, that his body still didn't have the capacity to withstand the training it required. He just explained the concerned strategies and the mindset one needed to have to triumph in hand to hand combat.

"Death eaters are so dependent on their wands that they are physically inept to handle any close quarter fights. Wand becomes almost useless when the opponent is in close range. Also the element of surprise can really give you the upper hand." Harry just nodded, as usual. Harry suspected that his head would burst with the amount of knowledge and information he was being fed. "However, to dish out maximum damage, you would need sufficient strength and hence you, seeing your current condition, won't be indulging in it in the near future." Lance ended with a patronizing tone while Harry just huffed, biting back his response. His trainer really knew how to work him up.

***B***

After a week of Pensieve visits to his past, Lance had asked him to stop and had advised him to view the memories pertaining to the training he did each day. He had also asked him to increase the duration of his meditation to half an hour. He had used his Occlumency technique to sift through his mind and arrange his thoughts and memories.

All of this had a rather positive effect on him and Harry had thanked Lance wholeheartedly for it. He found that he was hardly affected by Lance's scathing or insulting words. He seemed to have gotten the hang of _emotional discipline; _as Lance had called it. His mind seemed relaxed but the alertness he felt in regards with his surroundings really surprised him. The nightmares were a rarity and he started to sleep in a deep slumber waking up with freshness he had never experienced.

There were no visions and his scar was not giving him much trouble. He assumed that his Occlumency was finally paying dividends. _How wrong was his assumption!_

***B***

He was flying through the clouds. The wind blew through his hair and his eyes were wide open, unaffected by the wind. His hands were clutching his vibrating broomstick which was moving at its maximum speed. How he loved flying.

Suddenly, he found himself facing hundreds of black cloaked men with white masks covering their faces. As abruptly as the scene changed, he was back on his broomstick, flying. And again the scene flickered. It was as if two rolls of films were mixed together and were playing alternately.

Then it hit him, even while he was still sleeping. He was having a vision! It seemed that Voldemort was trying unsuccessfully to block Harry out but Harry found himself in a front row seat, watching the flickering vision. The scene was distorted and the voice was breaking up but Harry soon realized what was going on. He desperately tried to wake up but he found himself stuck to his seat in Voldemort's mind.

After immense struggling, he broke through and his eyes opened. He was holding his stinging scar and his whole body was drenched with sweat. He quickly got up and looked at the table clock to find that it was nearly eleven. He had to do something! _Yes! The Order!_

He dashed down the stairs, paying no heed to the ruckus he was making and flew through the door and called out. "Anyone there? I have an important message!"

For a brief moment no one appeared. Harry was panicking. _Should I apparate to the burrow and inform someone or should I go to the headquarters? _Harry was going through his options. But before he could decide, a voice responded. "What's wrong? Had a nightmare?"

Harry whirled around to find a tall man come out of the cloak. The man had sandy hair, clean-shaven face and was slightly thin. Harry didn't miss the mocking tone in his voice, feeling an instant dislike towards him. "Are you part of the Order?"

"What a stupid question. Of course I am, doing useless work, guarding a brat." The last part was muttered but it was said loud enough for him to hear.

Harry ignored the insult, having more important matters on his mind. He informed him with forced calm and an even voice. "I had a vision. You need to relay the information to the Order as quickly as possible."

The sandy-haired man just looked at him disapprovingly. "Oh, so now you are a seer. And anyway, I am no messenger boy of the Order, so go back to _sleep_ and let me do my _job."_

Harry had enough. In a flash he was in front of the Order member, grabbing his collars he pushed him towards the wall with strength he never imagined he had. Harry's blazing eyes were looking at the man which such ferocity that it silenced his cries. "Listen to me carefully. Voldemort is planning a huge attack, I don't know where; his death eaters number in hundreds, maybe thousands. You better go alert the Order unless you want blood on your hands." Harry ordered in a deadly whisper causing a whimper to escape him. He disapparated the instant Harry released him, leaving Harry slightly confused at the fear he had perceived in the man's eyes.


	11. Farewells and Reunions

A/N: Previous chapter has been revised to get rid of a few grammatical errors (yeah, two chapters in two days took a toll on me). Another small edit has been done as well after one of my reviewers pointed out a flaw. Thank you and enjoy

* * *

Farewells and Reunions

* * *

"I missed you." Harry stated, meeting the longing eyes of the werewolf; longing not because the werewolf was hungry, but with love for his best friend's son.

"So did I." Remus echoed. Both of them had moist eyes and were hanging on to each other for support. For Remus, Harry was the last link to his friend James. The same was true for Harry as well.

Harry was having his usual morning run but his mind had been elsewhere. Last night's vision was fresh on his mind and he had not been able to sleep since. He had been quite surprised to see Remus sitting on a rusted bench waiting for him.

After a bit of comforting silence that resided over them, Harry put forth the question he was dying to ask. "So what happened yesterday? You did get my message, right?"

Remus just nodded but didn't say anything. Harry pressed on. "So where was the attack?"

Remus was still silent but before Harry could say anything he heard him say in a whisper "Everywhere"

"Everywhere?" Harry repeated as if he had not heard it.

"Yes, everywhere. It was a horrible nightmare… for both Order and Ministry put together. We still have to come to terms with what has happened and are still in the process to ascertain the amount of damage which was done." Remus clarified with a tired voice. He had dark circles under his eyes and along with his greying hair and his fatigued body he was looking too old for his age. _He needs to take it easy;_ Harry thought but he knew that now was not the time for such _luxury_ and hence didn't voice it.

"Which places have been hit? Any deaths?" Harry interrogated, with a lingering dread in his voice.

"I don't know." Remus sighed dejectedly. "There has been so much chaos that no evaluation could be done. But yes, there have been deaths…" Remus drifted into silence. After a pause, Remus looked up at Harry and with a small smile, he pointed out. "You seem to be in good health. Your relatives have been treating you well I hear." He came closer and asked with a conspiring tone which was clashing with his wide smile "You found a way to befuddle their minds without magic, haven't you?"

Harry chuckled in spite of himself. He knew Remus was trying to change the mood and lighten the air, but Harry didn't mind. He will have to wait to know more about last night's happenings.

Harry's expression changed to mock indignation. "_I see_. So the Order have been _peeping_ through the windows and _spying_ on me." Harry couldn't stop the smile from breaking on his face.

"I agree. The Order is really good at snooping." Remus agreed with a twisted smile. "I heard from one of the members saying that you have put on quite a few muscles."

"They were peeping into my room?!" Harry exclaimed in outrage. "Well well. I really didn't expect much from the Order and I would not put it past them of _such_ activities." Harry said in a condescending tone trying to suppress his smile.

Remus, not getting the drift, said with a slightly affronted tone "You do realize that you are insulting the Order in front of one of its member. And what I had said earlier was only conjecture. I was just kidding."

"So was I" Harry responded cheekily.

"Hmm..." Remus mused with a huge grin. "Do I see a future marauder?"

"Yes indeed." _A masked marauder_, Harry thought. They both chuckled.

"Speaking of which, what did you do to that Order member?" Remus asked curiously.

"Why?" Harry enquired with a frown. He didn't remember doing anything, besides the part where he pushed him, rather roughly at that.

"Well, when he came to report about the vision you had, he was shaking all over. He was saying that you threatened him." Remus informed with a searching look in his eyes.

"I did no such thing!" Harry exclaimed with outrage. "He was being an ass and I just pushed him towards the wall to sink in my urgent message."

"You manhandled him?" Remus asked with a surprised look.

"That is too strong a word. He was really getting on my nerves. If they can't handle it, why do you people put them up for it?" Harry shot back.

"Actually, Sam, that's his name, had volunteered for the job. He was quite happy when his request was accepted."

"It didn't look like he was enjoying himself." Harry said with sarcasm. "Did he expect to find himself in a battle where he would heroically defend me and lay waste to the enemies?"

Remus chuckled. "I suspect that could be the reason. What a _let-down_ for him." Harry joined in as well.

After another bout of silence Harry put forward a question that had been bugging him for some time. "Umm... You have known my mother since school days, right?"

Remus looked curiously at Harry. "Yeah, I guess. Why the sudden interest?"

"I just wanted to ask something..." Harry paused trying to find a way to phrase his question. After looking at Remus's encouraging eyes, he asked "Who all were my mother's friends?"

"We were of course." Remus answered, slightly puzzled.

"I mean the time before you were friends with her." Harry clarified although his eyes were trying to look anywhere but at Remus.

Then it hit Remus about the reasoning behind Harry's questions. "Why do you want to know?" Remus asked with a guarded expression.

"I want to know." Harry requested with a determined look in his eyes.

"It does not change anything."

"It doesn't matter, someone should have told me about it."

They both knew who they were talking about-Snape.

"There was no reason to tell you." Remus replied stubbornly.

"I had a right to know." Harry shot back. "I hate it when people keep things from me."

Remus met the intense eyes of his ward and then sighed with resignation. "I know and I am sorry." After another sigh he went on. "What could we have told you? That Snape was friends with your mother, who later brought about her death? We hated him so much that even thinking about him fuelled our anger. How could we have got ourselves to tell you about them? Yes they were friends till their fifth year. Something happened in sixth year and they drifted away. As far as I know, they were friends before they even came to Hogwarts."

"Yeah, aunt Petunia told me."

Remus remembered something and suddenly said "I forgot to tell you about the reason I came to speak with you." Harry looked apprehensively at the look Remus was giving him. "You are leaving Privet Drive tomorrow morning."

***B***

Harry was looking expectantly at uncle Vernon and aunt Petunia, waiting for their answer. Dudley had an impassive expression on his face.

Earlier he had asked Remus what would happen with the Dursleys after he left, to which he had just said that their protection would be tripled. Harry however, was not satisfied with that and had spoken with Lance who suggested moving them into another location. After going through all the options, they had come up with a house which Harry thought was too good to reject. The house was right next to the drilling company where uncle Vernon worked. The house was fully furnished and the locality was also appealing in many ways that only his uncle could appreciate. Also, he was going to pay the rent for the house and that Harry assumed would close the deal. However, looking at uncle Vernon now, he was having doubts about his misplaced optimism. He saw his uncle's curious expression transform into an obstinate anger.

"No, I am not going anywhere." he said stubbornly.

"Why not? This is only for your own safety." Harry said hotly.

"You don't need to tell us what is good for us, we can decide ourselves. Thank you."

Harry looked at his aunt for help who promptly said "Vernon, you should think-"

"You keep quiet." Vernon interrupted pointing his wagging finger at aunt Petunia. "Your judgement has been clouded by the love for your nephew. My mind is made up and nothing you say will change it." Saying this he left. Harry looked at the defeated expression on his aunt's face and felt slightly guilty. He had noticed that his uncle and aunt had drifted away since his aunt had started caring for him. Dudley didn't look pleased as well, possibly due to the reason that he would need to move away from the gym and possibly his friends.

Harry sighed and left for the gym hoping to catch Lance before he left. Luck was on his side this time. "Don't worry. Leave this to me and have faith in me." Lance assured him confidently.

***B***

Harry had just finished breakfast together with his relatives and was sitting with them in the living room, tension floating in the air. It was Sunday and everyone was at home. Harry had skipped today's training and surprisingly, so did Dudley. Even uncle Vernon was sitting there in silence with an impassive expression. It seemed, however bizarre it was, that they were all going to see him off but a small part of his mind kept telling him that they were just trying to ensure that they were finally getting rid of him.

He was all packed and ready to leave and was just waiting for Remus to arrive. He had told him that he would come for him in the morning to reduce chances of an ambush. As the tension in the room rose to unbearable limits, Harry literally ran to the door after hearing the knock.

He found two people waiting for him on the porch smartly dressed in suits. They looked so normal that he would have had difficulty identifying them from a crowd. Remus looked younger without his shabby clothes and Tonks looked... weird without her pink hair. They were looking at him with an amused smile playing on their faces. "What? No welcome?" Tonks teased him with a pout.

"I was just surprised that you showed up _together_." Harry returned wagging his eyebrows suggestively.

"Oh my! We have a devil on our hands." Tonks covered her mouth with her hands with mock horror.

"Enough chit-chat." Remus said looking around warily. "Aren't you going to let us in?"

Harry quickly ushered them into the living room where they politely greeted the Dursleys. Aunt Petunia returned the greetings while uncle Vernon only gave a curt nod in response. Dudley whimpered and took a step back when addressed by Tonks. "We will wait for you upstairs from where we will appar- leave." They left him to say his goodbyes.

Harry turned around to face his relatives for the last time. He was standing closest to his uncle so he walked towards him but was lost on what to say. Furthermore, the sombre expression on his uncle's face along with the hint of apology that Harry could discern from his uncle's eyes surprised him. He would have thought that his eyes were playing tricks on him but when his uncle brought forth his hand to shake his, he ruled that out. Harry could understand how his uncle felt. After nearly sixteen years of misplaced hatred towards him, the reasons of which turned out to be unfounded in the end, his uncle didn't know how to interact with his nephew. However, it seemed that words were not required, they both nodded to each other and Harry turned to the next person, who had eyes welled up with tears.

No, it was not his aunt. It was his cousin, shockingly. Harry would have laughed at his comical expression if the mood in the air wasn't heavy. "I am sorry for bullying you. Take care." was Dudley's _eloquent_ parting words. Harry again had this sudden urge to laugh. He was going crazy, he thought.

"You take care yourself. I am sure you will become a formidable boxer someday. What with all the practice you had with me." Harry said with a teasing tone. Dudley had puffed his chest but his face held an expression which was a funny combination of pride and shame. Harry quickly looked away to prevent a laugh, which was threatening to escape him.

He met his aunt's longing eyes. She started with "I am sor-"

"Don't you dare apologize." Harry interrupted. He went on with a softer tone. "After all, I have already forgiven you. You all."

Aunt Petunia looked astonished. "You have? How could you forgive us- me for what I have done?"

"It was not easy but I had to do it. I knew you were repenting and the only way for you to forgive yourself was to be forgiven." Harry said calmly.

A tear streaked down his aunt's cheek. "You have grown a lot, haven't you?" she asked rhetorically. "If only... if only I could have seen you for what you were." This crushed the hold his aunt had over herself and broke into remorseful sobs, engulfing Harry into a tight hug. Strangely, Harry didn't feel uncomfortable. He patted her back and looked over at his uncle who quickly hid a smile which was present a moment before. Harry smiled at him causing his uncle's smile to return. This brought about a healthy change in his uncle's face making him look... _less ugly_.

He quickly averted his eyes and swallowed down another bout of laughter. He attributed this behaviour on his part as a _side effect_ of his emotional discipline. He gently extracted himself from his aunt and said looking in her eyes "Be safe."

A small smile appeared on aunt Petunia's face. "Shouldn't I be telling you that?"

Harry just smiled and took a step back to address them. "Well, I have to go but don't think you have got rid of me. I will see you soon." Aunt Petunia had a happy smile after hearing this while Dudley held his bowed head in mock horror before chuckling at his own _impressive _comedy. Uncle Vernon just smiled. Weird, that image of his uncle.

"Please think over my proposal." Harry directed this at his uncle whose smile disappeared and his eyes hardened, but didn't look away. "Goodbye everyone."

He left for his bedroom. That went well. It seemed that his life had a knack of throwing him in unexpected situations and he somehow managed to come out at the top. Remus looked questioningly at Harry's satisfied expression but didn't say anything.

"So here is the plan. We are going to apparate from here and then after some more apparitions we are going to portkey to the desired location." Tonks informed in a whisper as if afraid that someone could be hearing at the windows, which happened to be about fifteen feet above ground.

"And where is that?"

"You will know soon enough." was the annoying cryptic reply Harry received. He guessed that he could be going to either the Weasleys or Grimmauld place. He hoped that it was the former.

Remus took hold of Harry's trunk while Tonks got the empty cage. Hedwig had already left as if knowing where Harry would turn up in the end. They placed their free hand over Harry's shoulders and apparated. They appeared in a large cupboard which had smelly brooms on one side. After a pause they appeared in an empty unused lane between two buildings which was littered with garbage. Tonks handed Harry the cage and disapparated without explanations. Remus just uttered "A decoy." at Harry's questioning look. They started walking and after about five minutes, they ended up in another secluded alley. Remus extracted a quill from his pocket and held it out for Harry. They held onto it for a minute looking slightly foolish when suddenly he felt the familiar tug and landed, surprisingly, feet first.

He was standing in a large outfield which was very familiar to him but he still couldn't place it. "You have taken a lot of trouble to bring me here," Harry pointed out. "…what with multiple apparitions, decoys and timed portkeys."

"We had to be careful. Apparitions can be traced, you know." Remus explained.

"So where are we?"

"Can't you tell?" Harry shook his head. "Even I can't tell you."

"Why not?" Harry asked slightly irritated with all the secrecy.

"Because I can't." Without further explanations, he pulled out a piece of parchment and held in front of Harry who read it aloud suddenly realizing what the paper was. He looked up to see the familiar house which had appeared out of nowhere. The house seemed to bend at impossible angles, only the magic preventing it from falling down.

"The Fidelius charm. Good for the Weasleys." Harry nodded his head in approval.

"Alright, I have to go. The Order is kind of shorthanded." Remus said after burning the parchment. "Take care."

"You as well." Harry nervously walked towards the front door after Remus disapparated. It had been more than a month when he last saw any of his friends and the anticipation he felt was unnerving.

He came to a stop at the door and could make out the loud chatter on the other side of it. He knocked but it seemed no one heard it. He sighed and opened the door to let himself in. At first no one noticed him but the room suddenly quietened down as if a wave of silence had struck them. Everyone had their eyes on him. All the Weasleys, sans Percy, along with Hermione were present. The game of chess was long forgotten, the cups of tea were getting cold, the arguments and the discussions ceased to exist. It was as if they were all petrified.

Harry did the first thing that came to his mind. He yelled a "Boo!" causing most of them to flinch. _Very childish of him_. "I am neither dead nor dying so cut it out all of you." He teased everyone with a chuckle.

This seemed to relax everyone and the twins were the first one to break the silence. "Wow! We didn't know you had it in you."

"It seems we have misjudged you." The twins were having their usual comical word play.

"After all what can we expect from our original investor."

"Uh... uh... guess you said too much, Fred." George said under the piercing gaze that their mother was shooting at them.

"I am afraid so, my brother George." Fred muttered.

Mrs Weasley, ignoring the twins, ran towards Harry and engulfed him in the usual bear hug. Mr Weasley, Bill and Charlie waved at Harry from behind. "You seem okay, but still a bit thin." Mrs Weasley said after releasing him. "Wait till I feed you up."

"I am looking forward to it." Harry said with sincerity. Mrs Weasley was pleased by his response and stepped back to let others meet him.

Ron and Hermione stood together in front of Harry, observing him. "What's wrong? You recognize me, right?" Harry said teasingly, waving his hand in front of them.

"Yeah, we were… surprised to see you." Hermione responded curiously and Ron nodded in agreement.

"Why so?"

"You look slightly healthy and seem so full of life." Hermione pointed out, the all-observant.

"Is that bad?"

"Not at all. It just seems so unlike you."

"You mean from the moody Harry who was ready to bite off anyone's head at the slightest provocation?" They both nodded and then quickly shook their heads after realizing what they were agreeing to. Harry just chuckled.

"What happened to your glasses?" Ron asked.

"I broke them. So I got a pair of lenses instead." Harry didn't elaborate and Ron seemed satisfied, unlike Hermione.

He looked at his friends who seemed different as well. Ron seemed to have gone through another growth spurt, his height surpassing the tallest of his brothers. He looked matured but he could make out a hint of arrogance creeping in. "Say let's have a game of chess, or some Quidditch or... a friendly duel!" Ron said with a burst of excitement. Alright, he only _looked_ matured, Harry corrected himself. And what was Ron going on about a duel?

"Ron, I just came, can we do this later?" Ron nodded with a sour look as if he had been denied his favourite treat. Harry looked at Hermione who had straightened her hair which was shining and hanging on her shoulders. "What did you do to your hair?"

"Why? Do they look bad?" Hermione said with a doubtful expression which was so unlike her. In the past, she seemed to care less about her looks.

"On the contrary, you look great. I am sure Ron agrees with me." Ron nodded his head rapidly as if to give his approval but reddened after realizing that he was being teased. Hermione turned the same colour.

Harry chuckled and was joined in by Ginny, who was standing slightly away from them, feeling a bit out of place. "How is it going Ginny?"

Before she could reply, Ron butted in. "She has been busy exchanging _love_ letters with Dean." Ron spat.

"I have a mouth, you know." Ginny retorted. "And don't even start me to tell Harry about all your big headedness."

"Why you-"

"What's with all the ruckus?" Ron was interrupted by a high pitched shout which came from the base of the staircase. There Harry found an old man with red hair. The similarities between him and the Weasleys stopped there. He had a gaunt face with patronizing eyes and a sneer of a smile. His cheek bones were pronounced, giving him a sinister look. He was of medium height, slightly taller than Harry. He made his way towards Harry with a slow graceful walk that could have even put a Malfoy to shame.

He came to a stop behind Ron and was throwing calculating looks at Harry. Hermione, Harry noticed, had mysteriously disappeared.

"What do we have here?" The old man drawled with an aristocratic tone. "The great Harry Potter."

Harry looked at Ron and Ginny who were giving him apologetic looks. "Yes, that's me." Harry responded, nonchalantly.

"Oh! Look at the arrogance. What else can be expected from a half blood." The foul old man spat.

Harry looked unperturbed but inside him there was a raging battle to throw back a retort. Ron's and Ginny's eyes widened in shock at the insult and the whole room returned to the previous uncomfortable silence. Ginny tried to say something but was silenced by a sharp "Keep your mouth shut." from the nasty old man. Harry stayed silent, meeting the gaze filled with hatred. "How dare you mock me by staring at me? I am the head of the Weasleys. It seems your parents haven't taught you any humility. Oh wait, they are already dead." The cruel old man ended with a satisfied smile, waiting for an explosion, so was everyone else.

Harry felt slightly hurt, not because of the insults, but due to the fact that no one came to his defence. However, his feelings didn't show on his face. He was too hardened by the discipline he maintained over his emotions. Even two can play this game. "Thank you for reminding me that. I sometimes forget they are not alive." Harry replied with an innocent expression but with devious eyes.

Everyone was shocked by his calm demeanour, including the conniving old man, who tried to change tactics. He turned to Ron and rebuked him. "The choice of your friends really astounds me; him and that mudblood." Ron's face turned a deep shade of red but still didn't say anything.

"I would request you to not insult my friend in front of me." Harry said with a deathly whisper.

"Or what?" the foolish old man challenged him, his hand moving towards his wand.

"Now now." Harry said sarcastically. "Let's behave like adults and resolve this matter without any childish ventures." This caused a series of gasps around them.

"Why? Afraid to lose?" The batty old man mocked.

"I know I will lose so why bother. You do realize that I am not even an adult yet. It would be foolish on my part to be sent to Azkaban on such _trivial_ matters." Harry said and looked away. He didn't know how long could he play along. "Mrs Weasley, which room would I be staying in?" No response was forthcoming however; everyone seemed to be sharing the same expression-shock and awe.

"My room as usual." Ron informed behind him, his squeaking voice echoing around the room.

Without looking at anyone, Harry picked up his belongings and went up the stairs.

***B***

"That was some performance. How did you manage it?" Ron asked with astonishment, after all of them were settled in his room. After Harry had left, Ginny and Hermione had come in, followed by Ron.

"Never mind that. How could you stand him while he humiliated me and insulted Hermione?" Harry asked with wounded eyes.

"It's alright. I just try to avoid and ignore him. I don't mind." Hermione quickly said.

"I do. So should have Ron." Harry seethed.

"I do mind!" Ron exclaimed hotly.

"You didn't show it." Harry admonished him.

"Harry, please go easy on Ron. He will explain his actions, or lack thereof."

Harry looked at Hermione who nodded and then he looked at Ron expectantly who took a deep breath and explained. "Well, you see, he is the great uncle and the head of the Weasleys. William Weasley. That's his name. He is very rich, richest among the Weasleys. A renowned dueller as well. But that's not what makes him special. It's the wand that he carries. It has been passed down from generation to generation."

This peeked Harry's interest. "What is so special about that wand?"

"It amplifies the magical power. It is said that the wand is worth dying for." Ron informed.

"Yeah, pointless is all I have to say to that. Have you heard of it?" Harry posed this question towards Hermione.

"Yes I have heard of it. It's called the Fire Wand. This wand is not chosen by a wizard but rather, it chooses. It doesn't work in hands unworthy of its ownership. It multiplies one's magical potential and grants the wielder the power to do great things."

"Someone had said the same to me as well." Harry said remembering what Ollivander, the wand maker, had told him.

"This wand is different. You can feel as well as see the difference." Ron informed.

"How can you tell?" Harry asked him curiously.

Ron didn't answer but pulled out a wand which was not his. Harry's eyes widened in surprise. "Yes, the wand has chosen me." Ron announced. The wand was long, made of redwood and had a glow around it. "Its core has a hair of a Griffin; the Gryffindor beast." Ron said proudly, beaming at his wand.

"He has been bursting to tell you about it as soon as he got it." Ginny teased.

"I am still surprised that the wand chose him. No offense Ron." Ron was offended, but Hermione didn't notice and went on. "I agree Ron is good at duelling but nothing exceptional. The wand had skipped the generation of Mr Weasley and hence none of Ron's thirty four uncles and his dad received it. Ron somehow got the wand competing against seventy two male cousins." "

"Why only the males?" Harry asked.

"Females were not deemed fit to own such a wand." Ginny said bitterly.

"By whom? I don't think it's the wand." After a pause, Harry smacked his fist into his palm. "I believe that a female was chosen by the wand for the previous generation." Harry deduced.

"You might be right." Hermione nodded in agreement.

"So how does it choose?"

"There is a spell which when cast by the chosen one from that wand will cause a red glow to appear at the end of the wand, otherwise nothing happens." Ginny informed.

Harry turned to Ron, who seemed to be in a deep shade of red and was about to burst. "Ron, I am really proud of you. I knew you had it in you."

Ron blushed at the praise he received and asked Harry with a doubtful expression. "You are? You... you are not jealous?"

"Why should I be jealous of you?" Harry assured him with a sincere smile. "After all, no matter what wand you have, I will still defeat you in a duel." Harry said with a challenging tone.

"We will see about that." Ron accepted with a smug smile.

Hermione muttered while shaking her head. "And I thought he grew up. _Boys_." Harry chuckled. He was finally reunited with his friends.

***B***

The lunch was a silent affair, due to a particular horrid old man who was sitting at the head of the table. Harry learned, in words uttered in a low tone, what had been happening in the Weasley house. The cruel old man was already present when Ron and Ginny returned from Hogwarts. Ron happened to be the youngest of all his cousins and hence the old man had to wait till all of the candidates had come of age. Theirs was the last house and all of Ron's brothers were summoned, but Percy hadn't turned up. If Ron hadn't been chosen, the old man would have to approach Percy at the Ministry. Ron saved him the trouble though. But his work was not completed yet and Ron was undergoing heavy training from the old man.

"It seems that you are going to bite off more than you can chew." Hermione said, referring to the duel that Harry had proposed. Ron puffed up his chest and his face held a superior look. The situation was too good to be ignored.

Harry stood up and pointed at Ron with mock dread. "Something is wrong with Ron. He is blowing up! Take cover before he bursts and inflict us with his pompousness." There were some subdued chuckles which died down under the death glare of the harsh old man. "You guys are no fun."

"What are you doing?" Hermione whispered. "Don't try to put the Weasleys in more trouble." At Harry's questioning look she told him. "After today's performance, Mr and Mrs Weasley had to pacify him, who was ordering your eviction from the house. He even threatened to leave with the wand. The Weasleys will not just be losing the ownership of the wand but also the wealth and property that will come along with it." Harry looked embarrassed.

Ginny quickly said "Dad told me that they don't care about the money, they just want Ron to have that wand and also have some peace at home. Try not to rub our great uncle the wrong way."

"I will try to stay out of his hair." Harry promised. After looking around the table he asked. "Why haven't I or anyone of you heard of him?"

"We knew but there was no reason to mention him. Truth be told, we never expected an heir in our family." Ron informed with a trace of pride in his voice. "Anyway, he was never around, going around on adventures all around the world."

"So how have you been doing at the Dursleys?" Hermione asked, after all the plates were licked clean. Harry obliged and dove into the emotional description of his past one month, much to the chagrin of Ron, while the girls listened with tear filled eyes. He of course ensured to keep out his _other_ activities.

"I am worried about them." Harry said with a worried frown. "They are still living there."

"But that's dangerous!" Hermione exclaimed.

"I know and I did tell them in so many words. However, my uncle was being the usual obstinate self." After a pause, Harry said trying to change the subject. "So will Hogwarts be open this year?"

"I am sure it would. Professor Lupin told me so." Hermione nodded fervently, as if trying to convince herself.

Ron seemed slightly unhappy while Ginny looked positively sick. "My OWL results would be arriving soon."

"Don't worry, no matter how bad you have done, you would still do better than Ron." Harry assured with a twinkle in his eyes.

"What's this? Are you playing a private game which includes pulling my leg?" Ron complained.

"Hmm... sounds interesting. Let's play." Ron just rolled his eyes but a smile escaped him.

***B***

Fifteen minutes to twelve. Fifteen minutes left for him to come of age. Harry couldn't wait. Remus and Tonks had also come to the party. Hagrid was away on a mission, he had been told. The Weasleys had earlier told him that they had decided not to wait till tomorrow and celebrate his birthday at the stroke of twelve. The old man had barricaded himself in his room, which was actually Mr and Mrs Weasley's room, resulting in a lot of adjustments around the house.

"Remus, can you tell me about the attack?" Harry asked again, hoping to get some answers.

"Umm... I don't think this is an appropriate time for it." Remus replied warily.

"Remus please." Harry requested. "The longer you delay it, the more apprehensive I will be." Remus looked at the crowd around Harry, who quickly added. "Whatever you are going to tell me, I will tell them. So tell us together and save me the trouble." Remus sighed and gave in.

***B***

A group of twenty men, cloaked in black robes were standing together in a dark room waiting for something. One of them was standing slightly away from them, possibly because he was their leader. Lucius Malfoy observed his company through his mask with dread. He fingered the locket in his pocket as if to calm himself.

All the death eaters that had been handpicked by the dark lord had wronged him in some way or the other; so had Lucius. This was a suicide mission. There was no way the Potter brat would still be there and he was sure that in its place there would be a trap waiting for them. But he couldn't voice his concerns to the dark lord. He was not too interested in digging his own grave.

Lucius waited for the clock to strike twelve, which would be their signal. There was some weird magic that protected that boy. He knew where the Potter boy lived but couldn't find it. No one could find it. Not even the dark lord. Weird magic was all he could say. After some waiting, the hour at question arrived. Suddenly everyone could remember where he lived, as if a cloud had been lifted, and apparated to the location.

The twenty masked men suddenly appeared and surrounded the house number four on Privet Drive. There was light in one of the rooms and Lucius could make out three people sitting in it. _Well, we could at least get his relatives instead of him_, Lucius thought. He might be rewarded.

No one moved while two of them set up anti-apparition wards. Lucius could feel the anticipation in the air. He suspected that they would soon be surrounded by the Order, if they were competent enough that is. He again felt for the locket, just to ensure that he still had it.

After getting the signal, they moved in towards their target. However, their progress was interrupted with popping and running sounds around them. _As expected_.

He quickly extracted the locket and whispered "Portus" with a smile. It didn't work. His smile disappeared and he cursed "Damn it!" Anti-Portkey wards. _Guess I will have to escape the hard way_.

***B***

Harry learned from Remus that the Death eaters had struck all over the country at prominent locations in groups of five to ten. Over hundred places had been hit. Twenty eight people were left dead and over hundred injured. Luckily, no one they knew. _Lucky_ in the most morbid sense that is. What was more shocking was the attack only lasted for ten minutes. It was completely coordinated, even their escape was flawless, untraceable. Their side only lost one who came too close to the Forbidden forest, and died by an arrow released by a Centaur.

"With this attack, Voldemort's message is crystal clear. That we cannot stop him and that he has limitless power at his disposal." Remus ended. Seeing the sombre mood of his audience, he added sadly. "I knew this would happen."

"It's alright, this is war. Ignoring it will not make it go away." Harry said pensively while Remus and his friends looked at him with new found respect. "It's five past twelve, let's cut the cake."

"Merlin! We forgot!" Ron exclaimed. Harry stood holding the knife, the snitch shaped cake in front of him, gold glitters decorating the surface. It was a beautiful sight. He had used his wand to blow out the candles to mark his coming off age. Everyone surrounded him with wide smiles. He mouthed a silent "Thank you" at Mrs Weasley, causing her smile to widen and her cheeks to redden with pride.

Harry was about to cut the cake when suddenly a shimmering animal, appeared through the wall, and approached Remus and said something to him. It was a Patronus!

Remus looked at Harry with worried eyes, causing Harry to hold back his breath. Remus voiced Harry's fears, his message echoing in the silenced room. "Privet Drive is under attack."


	12. Big Head Boys

A/N: Thank you for the reviews, keep them coming.

* * *

Big Head Boys

* * *

Harry felt as if his lungs had collapsed. The thing he feared had happened. He couldn't let them die. After all, he had finally managed to mend the bonds with them. He pulled out his wand and dashed towards the door.

"Wait!" Remus called out "Your relatives are safe!"

Harry stopped at the door and said with disbelief "They are?"

"Yes" Remus assured him. "They had already left this evening with their belongings."

Harry turned around, relief flooding his face, and sagged against the open door. Must be Lance's doing, Harry thought. But how?

The party resumed with subdued excitement. Harry felt slightly bad about it after all the efforts which were put into it. After the cake no longer existed along with the tasty food, Harry asked innocently "So where are my gifts?"

"You will have to wait for them." Ginny teased.

"How cruel" Harry complained with mock dejection. Everyone broke into rounds of laughter, which morphed into silent snickering after a yell from upstairs.

***B***

Harry got up at six, tired of yesterday's _late nighter_. Ron was still asleep, as usual. To his pleasant surprise, he found a heap of gifts at his bedside. However, he curbed his anticipation and after a quick wash, made his way downstairs. Mrs Weasley was in the kitchen washing dishes with her wand. "Hello Mrs Weasley."

"Merlin! Harry you scared me." Mrs Weasley exclaimed. "Going for your morning run?" At Harry's nod, she went on. "Remus told me about your daily routine. Let me fix you up a breakfast."

"It's alright. I'll make it myself." Harry said. In spite of Mrs Weasley's insistence, Harry made a sandwich and ate it along with a glass of milk.

"We have a large field around the house. Try to stay within the boundaries." Mrs Weasley advised him.

Harry didn't want to lie so he didn't respond and only said that he would be back within an hour or so. After running for around ten minutes, he found a spot hidden from view and disapparated. He appeared directly in the hidden training room of the gym, as was the usual practice. Lance was sitting in a chair waiting for him. He seemed to be slightly under the weather. "It's just a cold." he said when Harry inquired about his health.

"So what did you do to convince the Dursleys?" Harry asked curiously.

Lance grinned "I just appealed to their _needs_. I anonymously sent them photos of the house and also included a list of neighbours that they were going to have. A few snaps of a nearby gym sealed the deal."

"You are the worst kind of manipulator." Harry chided good-naturedly while Lance bowed his head as if he was being praised. He thanked him sincerely but Lance just waved his arm. And with that, they were back to training.

***B***

Harry reappeared behind the shrubs, hidden from view. Pocketing his wand he ran towards The Burrow. As he neared the house, he found a duel in progress, while the other Weasleys played as spectators. Ron against the bully of an old man. Ron seemed to be holding his ground, but Harry had an impression that the old man was holding back. The old man was moving around with nimble grace, his posture and focus was of a fighter with years of experience. He was good; at least Harry could give him that. Ron's duelling on the other hand looked almost ordinary, his limited movement was predictable. However, the wand that he carried more than made up for his weaknesses. Even Harry could feel the power of the wand at such a distance. After another minute of exchanging spells, Harry noticed frustration creeping in to the old man's expression and he sent a flurry of spells at Ron who predictably brought up a shield.

All of them bar one were absorbed by the shield with ease. The last remaining spell, to everyone's surprise including Harry, curved below the shield and hit its mark. Ron toppled over, his wand forgotten, holding his neck and choking on his breath. The ruthless old man slowly made his way to Ron, as if he had all the time in the world, and lifted the curse leaving Ron gasping for breath.

He was about to berate Ron but stopped himself when he noticed Harry watching them. With a forced smile he praised Ron. "You did well. Although, you could have done better." Ron blinked at the manipulating old man, as if trying to check whether he was dreaming or not. He had never been praised. "You seem fine for another round." And without waiting for a response, the plotting old man turned to the Weasleys, and announced as if in an arena. "It seems we have Harry Potter amongst us." He spread his hands for effect. Harry found it funny though, so did the Weasleys. "How about a duel between the Boy-Who-Lived and the Chosen One?"

So he was going to fight himself, he mused, according to the crazy old man. In any case, he was not ready to carry out his biddings. "I am really tired at the moment, let's do this later."

"You seem to be full of excuses. Are you afraid that your image of bravery and courage would be washed away?" the old man mocked him.

"No. Like I said I am tired." Harry said nonchalantly.

"C'mon Harry, just this once." Ron requested with puppy eyes.

"Maybe later" Harry fought back.

"Did you forget your challenge?" Ron tried to entice him. "Please mate, let us duel. I am tired of fighting losing battles, at least with you I have a chance to win."

"You wish." Harry teased playfully. After being assaulted by Ron's pleading eyes and supportive cheers from the crowd, he grudgingly relented. "Alright"

He walked over to stand in front of Ron, looking warily at his wand. He could defeat him, but would that be advisable? He was feeling slightly nervous and felt a surge of adrenaline flow through him due to his anticipation of the upcoming duel. It had been a long time since he had duelled. The only problem was that he would have to hold back, in fear of disclosing his training. However, it had to be done in such a way that no doubts or suspicion could be raised over him. Quite a few watchful eyes were over him and he had to prevent giving them any reasons for it. That was difficult because dumbing down his skills was not his habit. Harry decided to play defence to assess Ron's skills and improvise accordingly.

They bowed to each other and raised their wands. "Stupefy!" Ron yelled, as if the louder he cursed, the stronger was the power behind the spell.

Harry brought up his shield. Wrong move. Harry felt the air crackle as the spell raced towards him and he felt a sense of foreboding when it hit his shield. The shield buckled and Harry stumbled back under the force nearly losing his balance. His wand arm was also shaking due to the strain. Ron had a smug smile and was quickly onto him, taking advantage of Harry's position.

He seemed to have underestimated Ron. His wand actually, he corrected himself. He sent his own stunner at Ron to throw him off his attack, which he sent wide to purposely miss its mark. Ron surprisingly, jumped in its way bringing up his shield. Harry's stunner seemed to disintegrate even before it could touch the shield.

"Your aim is a bit wayward." Ron teased.

"Show off." Harry muttered, causing Ron to chuckle. Ron resumed his assault while Harry decided he was better off dodging. He could feel the power behind curses which whizzed past him. He also returned fire at random points around Ron, who foolishly tried to play catch with them using his shield.

Ron's spell casting was fast and more or else accurate. His training did seem to be improving him. The only thing wrong was that he seemed to be taking this as a game. Harry was finding it very easy dodging the spells coming his way which were much slower compared to the tennis balls. However, he knew that his perfect dance would raise suspicions. He needed to do something.

At the right moment, he tripped and fell down, a few curses passing over him. There were a few 'ooohs' from the crowd. Harry also heard a humourless chuckle followed by "How graceful." Holding back his skills was really getting on his nerves and he had a good mind to finish this fight and get it over with it. The questions that would follow was the only reason stopping him.

He decided to lose. After exchanging some more curses and jumping around, Harry brought up a weak shield against Ron's stunner. The next moment he found himself looking up at Ron who seemed to have revived him. There was a dull ache at the back of his head. "I am sorry, you lost." Ron was anything but sorry. He was jubilant, pleased, ecstatic and all of that.

"Nice one. It's seems I underestimated you." Harry said trying to be as sincere as possible.

"You did indeed." It was the offensive old man. "Ron here has managed to unmask the self-proclaimed hero to reveal the weakling hiding behind your fake bravado."

"Come now uncle," Mr Weasley said from behind him, leading the Weasley band and Hermione behind him. "You are being unfair. Harry has been out of practice for around two months."

"No more excuses, no more lies. He," the old man pointed his shrivelling finger at Harry "is a just a fake." He left after that proclamation, to everyone's relief.

"Don't mind him." Mrs Weasley said, inspecting him closely for any damage. "Are you hurt?"

"I am fine." Harry assured, flinching slightly.

"That was a great fight; you lasted longer than most of us. It seems Ron is becoming stronger by the day." Ginny stated with pride, causing Ron to puff his chest.

"Watch out!" The twins warned with terror, their trembling fingers pointing at Ron's chest. Everyone burst out laughing.

After it died down, Bill recalled "Harry would have had lost earlier if not for the lucky fall."

There was another round of chuckling except one who said. "Yeah, lucky." Oh great. She was onto him already. Now she would dig deep and uncover the truth. Hermione had an uncanny knack for it. He would need to be wary of her and try to delay the inevitable as long as possible.

"Don't take this loss too hard on yourself." Charlie tried to pacify Harry, misunderstanding Harry's pensive look. "After all, only two people have been able to beat him consistently."

"Ron has duelled with everyone?" Harry asked with surprise.

"He has been a pain." One of the twins said.

"Pestering anyone who happened to be around him." the other one said.

"He must have got a go on each one of us for more than five times."

"Ron, the fool he is, even had tried to include mum."

"She had to throw a knife at him to get rid of him."

"I did no such thing." Mrs Weasley exclaimed with her hands on her hips. "I just threatened him." Everyone laughed.

"So who has beaten him?" Harry asked curiously.

"Guess?" Bill said cryptically.

Harry looked at all their faces gauging their expression and then stated "Bill and... Hermione."

"Thank you for the vote of confidence." Charlie said with mock dejection.

"So I guessed wrong?" Harry asked.

"Nah, you were right on the money." Ron assured. "We are just surprised how you got that right?"

"Your expressions gave some of you away and with the process of elimination and deduction, I came to my conclusion." Harry intoned, as if reading from a textbook. A small was playing on his face.

"Harry is turning into a Hermione!" Fred exclaimed, holding his head in mock horror.

"_Actually_, I chose Hermione since she knows how to _handle_ Ron." Harry teased, causing everyone to snicker, while Ron and Hermione blushed deep red.

***B***

After Ron's childish insistence, Harry had opened his gifts. Mrs Weasley had given him the usual jumper, hand-woven with love and care. He got a book on _The Magic Within_ from Hermione and a stash of chocolate frogs from Ron. He got a snitch from Ginny, much to his pleasant surprise. He carried it around wherever he went. He also received a suspicious package from the twins, which he had got the twins to open for him. It turned out to be a wand holster, a new design in their creation. Harry was told that the twins were trying to develop more stuff along those lines since they were being tagged as _not-so-serious_ people. He learned that they were still not being allowed to join the Order. Bill and Charlie bought him a broom maintenance kit. Remus gave him an album which had pictures of his school days. Hedwig had brought him three gifts, two from the Dursleys and the other one from Lance. Aunt Petunia had sent him his mother's wedding album while the other one, which was a muggle quill, was from Dudley. Lance had sent him a book, surprising Harry. Not because it was a book, but due to its title – _The Leader's Way. _Leader? What was Lance on about?

Anyway, he had thanked everyone with all of his heart. He also felt slightly guilty for not remembering to gift his friends on their birthdays. He vowed to change that. Only if he knew what was waiting for him.

The same day, he also received a letter from Gringotts, declaring the financial status of his account. He was surprised to learn that he now had over sixty eight thousand galleons, the increase due to the addition of the money from Sirius's account. The letter told him that the increase was very less due to the constant drain in the Black family wealth over the last ten years. Harry was not worried about that, what he had was too much already. He also learned that he was made a partner in the twins company, who had been paying him one-tenth of their profits every month. He tried to talk them out of it but they refused to budge stating that he was the sole reason for their success.

***B***

As the days progressed, Ron started to irritate Harry. He regularly hinted about his victories and what the future held for him. It was not just Harry though.

"Ah… my head!" Hermione moaned after being badgered by Ron. "Why didn't you just defeat Ron?" she complained to Harry. "He was bearable before you lost to him. Now he is just a... "

"Pain in the neck?" Harry supplied and Hermione nodded. "I did try but his wand was too strong."

"Don't give me that. He is still Ron, clueless as ever." she quickly swivelled her head around to check for Ron before breathing a sigh of relief.

"Hermione, I haven't been duelling for more than two months." Harry said truthfully. "The change which you see is only physical; it's just that I have been working out."

"How do you explain the calmness and maturity you displayed? The Harry I knew wore his emotions on his sleeves."

"Are you accusing me of being an impostor?" Harry asked. Hermione quickly shook her head. "I have rolled up my sleeves. I have realized that my weakness have been my unstable emotions."

"Who made you realize that?" Hermione probed. He paused and looked at her intensely, causing her to fidget. He had a good mind to tell her to mind her own business. However, that would not help his cause.

He decided to tell her part of the truth. "The trainer of the gym I went to had parted some wise words to me." Hermione, luckily, seemed satisfied and somewhat relieved by this disclosure. Harry was pleased by his decision.

When Ron's harassment didn't stop and no one tried to do it themselves, Harry confronted him. They were playing a game of chess; Harry surprisingly had the upper hand. It was partly due to practice he received during training and also due to the fact that Ron was again boasting about his new found strength, his concentration no more in the game he loved.

"Ron" Harry stopped Ron's monologue. "Do you think I am jealous of your wand?"

"Why do you ask?" Ron asked, slightly miffed at being interrupted and confused by the sudden question.

"Just answer my question." Harry requested.

Ron looked at him with calculating eyes and then said. "No."

"Do you think your brothers are jealous of you?"

"Yes. A little bit." Ron agreed, trying to comprehend where Harry was leading to.

"Do you think that we all are proud of you?"

"Of course"

"Now tell me, do you know that I'm rich?" Harry put forth.

"Yes. But what does that have to do with anything?" Ron asked with exasperation.

"Please humour me." Ron nodded unconvincingly. "Alright, last time I checked, I had around sixty eight thousand galleons, not counting the estate and properties I own. I also own a tenth of the venture the twins have established. With so much money I could buy hundreds of Firebolts-"

"What's all this nonsense, please get to the point." Ron yelled with irritation.

"I am sorry; I am getting there, please bear with me." Harry assured. "So as I was saying the money could buy me a hundreds of Firebolts. And if I wanted I could buy myself into the Auror academy as well. My money can give me power to-"

"Enough!" Ron interrupted with a yell. "I don't care how wealthy you are. Are you trying to belittle me? Are you trying to make me feel poor? I am happy with what I have. My family is more than enough for me. You cannot buy a family with your money, can you?" Harry heard a series of gasps released from the onlookers that comprised of the younger Weasleys and Hermione. "I thought you were a better person. I guess I was wrong. Uncle William was right about you."

Harry was hurt by the words uttered by his best friend. It really hurt, but he had to go through with this. "You were hurt my words, weren't you. I didn't even boast about it, just stated them in a matter of fact manner. And it was only once. What have _you_ been doing? Everyone was happy about your new wand. But your relentless harassment and boasting was diminishing their happiness. You kept pushing the wand in their faces without realizing that you were not only irritating them, but also making them feel inferior. Everyone tried to mask their discontentment but there is a limit to everything. A limit which you have crossed a while back."

"So... so what you told me earlier was... you didn't mean it?" Ron stuttered, his eyes wide with confusion.

"You think I am so heartless? Have I ever mentioned my wealth to you before? I care about how someone would feel, but that someone seems to care less about people around him. How _thick_ can you be?" Harry berated him with a sharp voice.

Ron had an ashamed look unable to meet Harry's eyes. He turned to his family and apologized. "I... I am so sorry. I didn't realize... Please forgive me."

"There is someone else who you have hurt more than us." Hermione said. "If he forgives you, so will we."

Ron looked confused "Who-" It hit him and his face whitened with horror. He turned to Harry who was looking at him with hardened eyes. "I didn't mean... I-"

"You seem to say a lot of things that you don't mean. You don't think before you speak. What had you told me earlier? That I can't I buy a family? That the old man was right about me? Your words pierced my heart. If it was anyone else, I wouldn't have cared. However, it was my _best friend_ who had said those hurtful words. I will never forget them."

Ron eyes filled with tears of grief. He fell down on his knees and pleaded. "I didn't mean it. You are right. I don't think before I say anything. I will do my best to not repeat my mistakes. Please forgive me."

Harry's gaze softened and held Ron's shoulders and lifted him up. "I am glad you have realized it. However, you will be forgiven only one condition."

"Anything" Ron whispered.

"From now on, you will not mention anything about your wand to anyone of us."

"I will not. I promise." Ron promised sincerely. Everyone cheered; Harry received lots of pat on his back.

"Wow Harry, we didn't know you were so rich." Fred said.

"Sixty eight thousand galleons! Phew!" George exclaimed with wistful eyes.

"That's not all." Harry began with a teasing tone. "Sixty eight thousand galleons and the properties-"

"Yes! Yes! We heard." The twins exclaimed covering their ears. Everyone laughed.

***B***

The days passed without any further incidents. The house was peaceful; Ron had stuck to his word while Harry did his best to stay out of the old man's way. One morning, after Harry had returned from his run, he found a stack of letters waiting to be opened, discretely hidden on the table. They were from Hogwarts but no one had noticed them yet, everyone one was at the table having breakfast. Mrs Weasley looked at him with eyes that told him not to mention the letters now. The ruckus would have interrupted their meal and she didn't want that.

The girls had been waiting for the letters with trepidation, Ginny worried about her OWL results while Hermione was worked up unnecessarily in others eyes but Harry had an inkling to what it was. Harry joined them at the table but didn't eat anything.

The table's conversation was coincidently, revolving around Hogwarts. "It's official. Hogwarts is going to remain open." Hermione said brightly, pointing at the article in the Daily Prophet.

Ron groaned loudly, causing snickers to break around the table. Another person groaned. "Waiting for OWL results is a nightmare; worse than actually giving the exams."

Mrs Weasley shot Harry a warning look who only smiled back to assure her.

"I feel for you." Hermione said, placing her arm on Ginny's hand.

"I wonder who would teach us Defence Against the Dark Arts and Transfiguration, provided professor McGonagall would quit teaching it?" Harry thought out aloud.

"She has" Mr Weasley confirmed. "It was not possible being a Headmistress and then to teach as well."

"Hope we get some good professors." Ron said with a slight dread.

"That is just wishful thinking." Harry warned. "If the history of our professors is anything to go by, we can expect nothing less than an interesting year." Everyone went back to their plates to finish up their breakfast, thinking about what the future held.

"Ahhh! I can't take it anymore!" Ginny groaned. "I think I am going to die waiting!"

Harry looked at Mrs Weasley who nodded with a smile on her face. "I will save you Ginny! I will be your knight in shining armour." Harry exclaimed, standing up. Everyone looked at him as if he had grown a head, while Ginny had a look in her eyes he couldn't understand. He went to the table and picked up the letters and lifted them up for everyone to see.

The girls squealed in excitement and trepidation and raced to him.

"I am so handsome." Harry said out aloud, giving a pose. However, the girls literally knocked him over, snatching the letters.

Ron lifted him Harry up. "I don't think it was your handsomeness." Ron whispered loudly. Harry held an expression of mock disappointment, while the others laughed. The girls didn't even notice; they were busy going through their letters.

"So how did you do Ginny?" Mrs Weasley asked concern in her eyes. The person in question lifted her face with an incomprehensible expression.

Ginny's face broke into a wide smile. "Eight OWLs. And the best of all, I have been made a perfect." The twins groaned in disappointment, Mrs Weasley had a smile plastered on her face, her face glowing with pride. "Now I can play pranks and cause trouble without getting caught."

The twins' groans changed into cheers. "Our devious little sister." One of them intoned with a lovey-dovey voice.

"We had started to have doubts whether you had been left had at our door."

"But you proved us wrong." They came to her smooching, as if to kiss her but stopped and looked warily at the wand pointed at them. Everyone chuckled at their antics.

Ginny had a smug look while Mrs Weasley was trying to look at her disapprovingly but failed miserably.

"How did you become a prefect now?" Ron asked with pride and confusion.

"I don't know." Ginny admitted. "Hope nothing happened to the prefects of our year." She ended solemnly, all her happiness disappearing into worry. Harry deduced that mood swings were common during a war. Safety is never guaranteed and people live dreading what will happen tomorrow, who will get injured, or worse, die. They are happy to live another day, but it turns into sadness when people die around them. _Alright, I'm getting too philosophical_, Harry thought. _Lance is to blame for this._

Harry looked at Hermione who still hadn't said anything. She was clutching the letter in one hand while the other was curled up in a fist, holding something.

"What's wrong?" Harry enquired.

She looked up at Harry with utter disappointment. "I am still a prefect." She said in a strange detached voice. Harry's heart went out to her. He knew how she coveted that position. She was in fact the perfect choice for a head girl. Harry would have hugged her if not for the fact that he disliked physically affection himself.

He just resorted to placing his hand on her shoulder. "It's alright. They must have had their reasons."

"What happened?" Ron asked with a worried frown after taking in the distraught look on Hermione.

"She has not been made the Head Girl." Harry informed.

Ron's face contorted in rage. "Have they gone barking mad? They might have made a mistake, you know. They must have mixed up the letters and sent you the wrong one." Hermione just shook her head.

"Ron, do you know what this means, right?" Ginny pointed out.

Ron looked confused. "What?"

"A head boy and head girl cannot be from the same house after the rule was changed around fifteen years ago." Ginny informed. "Now there is a one third chance that you could be one of _them_." She ended with mock distaste.

Realization hit home and Ron screamed in horror. "No! I will be ruined! It better not be me."

Harry was slightly amazed at the stark difference in how his two friends were behaving. One saddened at being not made the Head Girl while the other was terrorized by even the thought of becoming a Head Boy.

"Yeah, it better not be." The twins began. "We will not think twice of disowning you." "Oh the humiliation we would have to endure." "We won't be able to show our face to our fellow pranksters." The twins held their held head in embarrassment.

Ron picked up his letter and opened it up, as if it was a bomb. A badge fell out in his outstretched hand. A prefect badge. There was a huge sigh of relief followed by chuckles.

"What's wrong with our family?" Harry heard Mrs Weasley mutter to herself. "They are happy for not having a Head Boy in the family." Mr Weasley, who was standing next to her, whispered something in her ear, causing her to redden.

Harry quickly averted his eyes to avoid staring. He felt content, bliss. Being part of such a loving family was a privilege. Not counting the old man, of course.

"Umm... Harry, did you check your letter?" Ginny asked.

"What for?" Harry enquired curiously.

"For the badge?" Ginny said.

"Nah, I couldn't have been made a Head Boy without being a Prefect." Harry informed confidently, which wavered when Mr Weasley informed him. "That does happen sometimes. Your dad is a prime example."

Everyone one looked at Harry as he picked up the letter, its weight quashing his doubts. He first pulled out the usual letter and placed it down after a quick scan. There was another letter, informing him about his Quidditch captaincy and his other duties - The duties of a Head Boy. The truth came out, literally, when Harry pulled out his badge. All the Weasleys were congratulating him and patting his back but Harry had his eyes on his distraught friend.

She was eyeing the badge with longing. He walked over to her and said. "I will write to the headmistress to rethink her selection."

Hermione shook her head and said. "It's alright. I am happy for you."

"You don't look it." Harry pointed out. "As far as my selection goes, I am not the right choice. I am not the material suitable for such a position. I care less for rules; I don't even know half of them."

"I disagree. You are actually the perfect choice. You have a way to make people listen to you. To make them follow you. I, on the other hand, am just a book worm, only excelling in studies." Hermione said, drowning in self-pity.

"That's not true." Ron argued.

"Hermione... "Harry began but was cut off by Hermione.

"I am fine, slightly disappointed but that's understandable." She went on with a forced smile. "I am proud of you. Really, I am. Just don't misuse your power."

"How can I, with you standing over me breathing down my neck and keeping me in line?" Harry teased, bringing a genuine smile on her face. "I don't know much about my responsibilities. You could help me with that." She nodded with excitement but Harry still could discern a hint of wistfulness and jealousy.

Why was he chosen? It seemed that he was chosen over Hermione if what Ginny said was true. Was it Dumbledore's doing? It had to be. He would need all the power and authority if he was to accomplish what was required of him.

He left her to her thoughts and turned to the twins. "What? Not going to disown me?"

Their response filled the air with amusement and laughter. "Nah, who would want to disown a particular rich brother?"

***B***

All was fine at the Weasleys; even the old man was bearable. However, his training sessions were worrying. Not that he was not improving, he was doing fine. Unlike his trainer.

In the beginning he just complained of cold or fever, but his health gradually deteriorated. One day, Harry found Lance waiting for him, a walking stick supporting him. When enquired, he said he was feeling weak and had finally been to the doctors. The next day he had told him that the tests indicated he had a disease and it would take a few months to cure. He was under medication. However, his treatment seemed to take no effect on him and Lance had to permanently use a walking stick. Harry knew he was hiding something. During one of his training sessions he confronted him.

"Today, we will play chess in a different way." Lance said, sitting in a chair opposite Harry, his stick standing next to him. "Assume that we are duelling. Every move you make is like a spell you cast. Your pieces indicate your magical reserve. You need to learn to optimize your strategy. Let's play."

Midway through the game, Lance's legs started to tremble. "Are you alright?" Harry asked, concern lacing his voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Lance said through gritted teeth.

"No you are not." Harry shot back. "Have you taken your medicines?"

"Yes" Even the effort to speak was taking a roll on him.

"Then why hasn't there been any effect on you? What are you hiding?" Harry grilled Lance who just responded with a weak "Nothing"

"Come on Lance, give me some credit. I can make out that you are hiding something. I won't rest till I find it out so you better tell me and get it over with." Harry said stubbornly.

Lance looked up at Harry, with a blank face but tormented eyes, as if trying to find any weakness in Harry's resolve. There were none. Lance sighed and looked away. He was silent for a while, so was Harry. "I have a disease," He began abruptly. "…which affects the nervous system. It starts from the arms and legs and eats its way through till it reaches the body, weakening whatever it inflicts. There... there is no cure."

Harry gasped realizing what this meant. "Have you been to St Mungo's?"

"I have been everywhere, tried everything leaving no stones unturned. Even the Muggles don't have a solution."

After this terrible truth sank in, Harry asked the question he didn't want to ask but had to. "How long?"

Lance turned to look at Harry with an intense gaze, filled with emotions he didn't voice. "Five months."


	13. The First Assignment

A/N: As usual, I will respond to reviews through my story. Previous chapter has been edited slightly following the helpful review. An explanation to a review in this chapter has been added. Also, all my previous chapters have been formatted to look appealing. Thank you and enjoy!

* * *

The First Assignment

* * *

He was going to die. The person full of power, full of life, was going to fade away. And he couldn't do anything; nothing at all.

Harry had never felt so powerless. Why? Why was it that anyone who got too close to him, ended up dead? Was he cursed? To be left alone forever? Was he responsible for all those who had died around him? _No! That's not true_, his mind fought back. It cannot be, he couldn't live with the blame of their deaths on his head.

_But wait!_ That's right. Lance was just playing another one of his morbid jokes, trying to test his emotional state. Yeah, that was it. It had to be. Harry expected Lance to burst out laughing, as he usually did. Harry looked into his trainer's eyes to find anything that might support his thoughts. But what he saw would haunt forever. The eyes were devoid of life. They were dead.

"It seems I don't have much time left. Let's try and make optimum use of it." Lance stated with an empty voice. There was a feeling of helplessness that crushed Harry's heart.

"I... I..." Harry choked at his words. He was overcome by emotions, but there were no tears in his eyes. His sad eyes were the only thing that expressed his grief.

"I don't need your pity. Everyone has to die someday. Death is always unexpected." The words however, felt hollow to Harry. It was as if Lance was trying to convince himself. "I want you to train as hard as possible, so that you can accomplish what you have set out for, at least before I... before I..." Lance couldn't go on as if saying it out aloud would make it more real. The emotional mask was still present so Harry wasn't able to see the pain behind those dead eyes.

"Do you have a family?" Harry asked quietly, not sure what made him ask it.

After a pause, Lance answered with a small smile, lost in thought. "Yes, a beautiful wife and two lovely kids."

Harry was shocked. He didn't expect his trainer to have a family since he seemed more of a loner to him. What would happen to his family after Lance...? "Do they know?" Harry enquired.

"My wife does." Lance said with his eyes closed. "My children, a girl and a boy, are still too young to understand."

"Is your wife a muggle?" Harry asked to which Lance just nodded. "Is she aware of the wizard kind?"

"Yes, I recently told her. Initially she thought I was just joking around."

"I wonder why." Harry said rolling his eyes. Lance chuckled but it didn't reach his eyes. "Are your children magical?"

"My son is but my daughter hasn't shown any signs yet. She could be a late bloomer." Lance was again lost in thought. Harry observed his trainer who seemed so unlike his usual self.

Lance said abruptly, coming out of silence. "I always wanted my kids to have a good life. Not like mine. I wanted to mould a future for them wherein their safety was guaranteed or to at least ensure they have a future. Now... I am not so sure." A tear escaped his red eyes, the first sign of an emotion. "Why now? We needed at least a year to get you ready. It seems time is against us; against me."

Harry thought what he could say but anything that he came to his mind sounded hollow. He felt that the silence would consume him in its belly of pain. He had to say something. "You know, when I was told what the prophecy was about, I felt I was counting down my time in the living. I despised the prophecy. Why did it have to choose me? It had ruined my life. My family, my childhood and my happiness; everything was taken away from me due to the damn prophecy. I was acting selfishly. I was just worried about myself, not realizing that if I failed, I would take the world down with me. I just drifted with the wind like a leaf, not caring where it took me. I had no hope; waiting for the inevitable. Who was I kidding? I was just a school boy, my survival solely due to my exceptionally good luck. How long could it last anyway? But then… you came." Harry looked at Lance with an intense gaze. "…with a hope that I am not weak, that I can be much more. I now not only have the will to live, but the will to fight back, to protect. I understand what you are going through. The pain, the hopelessness; I have felt them all with such intensity that I sometimes wonder how did I manage to live through it. However, you have taught me to turn my wounds into wisdom. I am truly grateful for that." Harry paused and then went on with fire in his eyes burning with determination. "I will make a vow. That I will not rest till the dark side is defeated. Dying is not an option anymore. I will succeed no matter what. I am going to redouble my efforts and train hard. I _will _finish what you started." Harry ended his undertaking with determination and resolve.

"Harry," Lance said, Harry looked up to meet the sparkling eyes which were dead a moment ago. "Thank you for making me realize my mistake. I was so lost in my grief that I forgot to look at the big picture. Even though my life initially had been full of hardship and pain, I have managed to find happiness and contentment in my family. I have lived my life and I don't have any regrets except that my death is coming too soon for my liking. I guess I won't see my children grow now. But that is alright. I have faith in you." Lance smiled; a genuine one. "I am really impressed. You really have matured beyond your years. You may not be very strong now, but your real strength lies in your heart and mind. Albus was right; if there was a person with whom our hopes could depend on, it was you." Harry smiled at the praise and ducked his head. "I trust you implicitly and I am certain that you will come out at the top against all odds."

Harry couldn't stop the redness creeping into his checks and replied with a wide smile on his face. "Why thank you."

"You are such a sucker for compliments." Harry laughed while Lance grinned, the pain no longer visible, at least for a while. "I think you are ready." Harry quickly realized what he meant. He got up, fumbling with his stick and opened the cupboard and returned with three things - the mask, Dumbledore's wand and the portkey. "Here, you can take them now. Give them hell." Lance said with a chuckle looking at Harry's excited face. "However, I need you to remember a few things. For now, only respond to alerts which are during the night and which puts you against fewer enemies. As far as I am aware, Order members have been successful on two occasions till now, capturing a few death eaters in the process. They have also managed to get the alerts added to the wards guarding prominent people and locations. You need to be very careful in protecting your identity, even the masked one. We need to delay the knowledge of your presence to either side for the plan to work. You need to ensure that any missions you go on, you must defeat and capture all of the targets. Surprise them with a quick assault. Don't let anyone escape. Initially, you won't need to worry about them running away. Since you are an unknown and they will most likely be outnumbering you, they will prefer to stay and fight rather than escape. You could use that to your advantage. Is that understood?" Lance briefed him.

"YES SIR!" Harry yelled with a salute and laughed at his own antics with Lance joining in.

"Today, you will learn about anti-apparition spells and wards which will come in handy later on. Also you need practice with your other wand using your left hand." And they were back to training, as if nothing had happened. It was a weird feeling using a wand in his left hand. It was as if the magical threads in his body were being split into two. Initially the spells casted by him were weak and had a poor aim. He had to practice a lot to perfect it. He tried to use both the wands at the same time but neither worked. A lot of work was required to achieve that, Lance had told him.

***B***

Harry had been regularly checking the portkey, even holding it in his pocket for long hours to ensure that he doesn't miss the portkey's vibration. He was getting obsessed with it. He had once dropped it, but surprisingly no one neither saw it nor heard it drop. It seemed that Lance and his headmaster had planned this whole thing out by taking every possibility into consideration.

While Harry was staying with the Weasleys, he found something odd; or someone. It was Hermione.

At first he thought it was just his imagination but then the repetition of the events started to bug him. He had found Hermione in her room or outside in the garden, reading a book. Ok, that was normal for her standards but she was reading in secrecy and hid or disillusioned the book once anyone approached her. If that was not odd enough, Harry had found her staring at everyone in the house with a piercing gaze. What was more unusual was that the gaze lacked any emotions; only concentration and a frown accompanying it. Harry hadn't found her staring at him but he was not so sure. She seemed to do this discreetly and for a short period of time, without anyone noticing it. Harry had accidently happened to find her staring at Ron with the same gaze but he had initially attributed this behaviour to her feelings for Ron. However, after keeping a careful eye on her, he found her to do this with most of the people in the house. He wanted to ask her what she was doing but didn't know how he could approach her. And anyway, if there was something to tell, she would tell him herself. So he tried to ignore it.

Ron was improving at a very quick pace. His duelling skills were making him a force to be reckoned with. No matter what Harry thought about the old man, he was a great dueller and even a better trainer. Now no one seemed to be able to defeat Ron, including Bill and Hermione. Harry avoided any duels with Ron, making some sort of excuses, to the old man's delight who mocked him relentlessly for it. Harry suspected that a duel with Ron, even if he gave it his all, would be very difficult to win. However, even with Ron's improvement, he didn't harass anyone, keeping to his promise. He was not being modest or anything but he kept quiet about it.

Harry figured that the way he handled the situation earlier had worked. It was not too smooth on his part but it did the trick. He had forgiven Ron for his hurtful words; as he had forgiven his relatives along with Dumbledore; and many more. He was no god; the pain was still there which he could never forget. Then why did he do it?

His life expectancy was not much to bet on and Harry preferred to forgive rather that hold grudges or hatred while he was still alive; he wanted to move forward without a burden holding him back. It was very hard to forgive; there was no question about it. However, each time he forgave, he found his heart to lighten and the love and happiness around him to increase. Harry felt that it was better to direct all his negative feelings towards the enemy.

Harry hoped that his will to forgive would not be tested. There was a limit to everything after all.

***B***

He was having a game of chess with Ron, toughing it out to Ron's surprise, when suddenly the portkey in his pocket started vibrating. _Not now! _Harry discreetly pulled it out while Ron mulled over his next move. The display glowed with the location and the estimated enemy count – Parliament street and three, respectively. Harry looked at his watch. It was ten thirty. This situation did qualify to Lance's conditions. He felt apprehensive about it. He had been dying to fight but now he didn't feel so ready. Could he really do it?

Harry crushed all his doubts and built up his resolve. He had to do it! He had only a few minutes before the Order took over. He had to make the most of this opportunity.

"Ron, I'll be back in a few minutes." At Ron's questioning looks he said "I'm going to the loo. Don't cheat."

"Ha! It's you who would need to resort to cheating if you want to win against me." Ron shot back.

Harry just smiled and then moved rapidly in the direction of the bathroom. He entered it and locked the door behind him. He transfigured his clothes into a blue robe - the predetermined apparel of the masked marauder - and retrieved his mask and the portkey from his pocket and put his original wand in the band around his right arm. He checked for his other wand which was strapped onto his left arm using the wand holster that the twins had given him. He had earlier learned that the holster became invisible as soon as it was strapped onto the arm; pretty useful. He looked at the back of his mask and sighed before wearing it. "Portus" And he was gone.

He appeared in a dark secluded alley which was breaking into a wide lane. He was in a muggle neighbourhood! Harry discreetly peeked around the corner to find his targets. How was he going to find them here in this crowd? He scanned the crowd for anything out of the ordinary, and that's what he found. He saw three men standing side by side, wearing ill-fitting muggle clothes, talking amongst each other and eying something at a distance. What was more peculiar was that all three were wearing full sleeved jumpers, even in this hot and humid weather. Harry tried to follow their gaze and found himself looking a building; a very familiar one with a red telephone booth next to it. _Ministry of Magic!_ What could they be planning? Where they death eaters? How could he verify it?

Harry couldn't do much with the muggle crowd around them. He switched back to muggle clothing and inconspicuously made his way towards them. He glanced at his watch and noticed that around three minutes had passed already. Not much time.

Suddenly the three men disappeared in an alley between two buildings. Harry quickened his pace and followed them. Their voices seemed to echo in the space between the walls and Harry could make out words like 'ministry' and 'dark lord'. Only the death eaters called Voldermort 'dark lord'. He needed to move closer so that he could be certain of their identity. He disillusioned himself hoping to at least hold the charm for a minute or so.

"…bypass the wards." Harry heard one of them say. "I don't this can be done, security is too tight."

"We need to infiltrate the ministry no matter what. The Minister's death would give our side a huge advantage."

"We could use Polyjuice potion or use the Imperius curse. We just-"

Harry had heard enough. He couldn't recognize any of the voices but he knew what they were talking about. They were plotting the assassination of the Minister! If that was true then these wizards might be strong enough to give him trouble. He needed to move in.

He quickly transfigured his clothes back to the blue robes. He was nervous; very nervous. He was shaking all over. Was it fear? Anticipation? His concentration was suffering due to this. He was in a position where he never expected to be. He was the predator, eyeing its prey through the darkness, ready to leap and devour them. Ok, not devour them but something along those lines.

He observed his surroundings. There was not much room to dodge. He had to take them out and make use of the element of surprise. They were still at a distance from him. He pulled out the other wand; holding it in his left hand. He didn't want to miss so he apparated behind them to finish them off.

The apparition went wrong.

There was no one in front of him. He heard a yell of surprise from behind. Oh great! Of all the times, Harry failed to do an accurate apparition and moreover, he was facing the opposite side.

For a moment no one moved with Harry's back towards the death eaters.

"Who are-" one of them began to call out; very foolish of them. They should have disarmed him first and asked questions later.

Harry fell to the ground, whirling around and shooting three quick stunners at the death eaters using Dumbledore's wand.

The death eaters had not even drawn out their wands to shield themselves, but the curses coming towards them were off target, since Harry had been off balance while casting them.

However, one of the death eaters, in an attempt to dodge the oncoming curses, moved into the path of Harry's curses, knocking him out. That was funny but now was not the time to laugh. Two to go.

"Avada Kedavra!" the middle one shouted while the other one tried to draw out his wand. It seemed to have got stuck in his belt. Harry would have laughed if not for the killing curse coming towards him. He dodged it and disillusioned himself and masked his movements by the silencing charm.

He quickly moved along the wall towards the two men, one poised in readiness with his wand pointing in his general direction while the other one was fighting a losing a battle. It looked as if his belt had managed to disarm him. Well, he hadn't even armed himself in the first place.

"What the hell are you doing?" The person with the wand yelled with outrage at the other death eater. It was too dark too see their faces.

Harry accidently kicked a can, inviting two jets green towards him. Damn! The death eater meant business and was not playing around. Harry had to jump towards his right; his disillusionment charm failed revealing his location. Harry sent a silent tongue tying curse but it was blocked. Harry's opponent had skill; he had to give him that.

"Reducto!" Harry shouted, aiming his wand not at the death eater, but on the ground in front of him. The death eater was surprised and choked on the dust that resulted from the spell. A stunner finished him off.

Harry's concentration was focused on the death eater he was fighting and didn't notice that the other one had finally won the battle with his belt. From the corner of his eyes he saw two jets of red light coming his way. Harry couldn't have brought up a shield in time and had to jump towards his right – and into the wall. His head hit the wall, dazing him slightly and his vision blurred. Harry somehow managed to evade a killing curse and shot a few random disarming spells towards the general direction of his opponent. This put the enemy on defence giving Harry enough time to regain his composure.

Harry apparated behind the death eater, accurately this time, stunning him from behind before the death eater could react.

Harry sighed in relief and quickly finished up the job which included tying them up and breaking their wands. Lance had informed him that even though it was against wizarding laws to break wands, Harry had to do it. It was required of him as per the plan. Lance also told him that the death eaters without their wands would be almost harmless. He had to agree with that reasoning.

Harry apparated and returned back to the bathroom. He changed back to normal clothing but his face was another story. His forehead was swollen and was bleeding profusely. He did his best to heal himself but only managed to stop the bleeding and reduce the bump. He walked out of the bathroom, tired to the bone. It was only a few minutes but he was spent.

Luckily, only Ron was in the sitting room, waiting for him.

"What took you so long?" Ron asked with irritation which changed to worry. "How did you get hurt?"

"I hit my head on the door." Harry replied lamely. He hoped Ron would buy it but the suspicious look on Ron's face was making him uneasy.

"I knew it!" Ron exclaimed.

"What?" Harry prompted with guarded expression.

"You didn't want to lose the game so you were trying to come up with excuses to draw the game. This seems rather overboard, don't you think?" Ron said referred to Harry's injury. Ron – _thick_ as ever.

Harry chuckled with amusement and relief. "Your mind is just making up fantasies to sustain the belief that you can win. Watch me as I crush your troops." They were back at the game where Harry got defeated outright.

Ron held a smug look on his face. "You were saying?" Harry just laughed.

***B***

Harry walked out of the door with a wide smile. He was at the ministry and just had given the apparition test. He had done well; at least that's what the impression his examiner had given to him. But the look on Remus's face was a different story altogether.

However, it had nothing to do with his results. Percy was standing at a distance with a look of indifference. "The Minister has requested your presence." he began without preamble after getting Harry's attention.

"You don't need to go if you don't want to." Remus said in an even voice, shooting a hard look at Percy, who avoided his gaze.

Percy just looked at Harry waiting for a response. Now what? He didn't care about what the Minister had to say to him, but Lance's words rang in his head. 'No matter how strong you are, without allies you alone will not be able to do much.'

"Alright, I'll come." Remus looked shocked while Percy looked pleased, with a small smile which was unlike his usual self.

"You sure about this?" Remus asked worriedly to which Harry nodded.

"Let's get this over with. You don't need to wait for me. I will apparate back." Remus nodded grudgingly and disappeared down the hall towards the direction of the atrium.

Percy took the lead while Harry followed. Soon Harry found himself in the office of the Minister of Magic. Percy was standing outside the door to give them privacy.

The room was almost barren, except for the mahogany table in the middle and a small cupboard filled with books behind it. Rufus Scrimgeour was sitting in an ordinary chair watching Harry. It seemed that the Minister cared less of appearances or was trying to impress this thinking on Harry. Harry kept silent to let the Minister begin the conversation. The Minister seemed to be thinking along similar lines and was silent as well. A few minutes into the _staring match_, the Minister finally voiced his irritation. "Aren't you going to say anything?"

"You had requested my presence so it is you who has to say something to me. Not me." Harry responded nonchalantly. The Minister huffed but didn't say anything. Again silence presided over them.

"Have you reconsidered my proposal?" The Minister began abruptly without beating around the bush.

"You mean the proposal to be your mascot? No I haven't. You have not given me any reason to do so." Harry replied with an air of indifference.

"Don't act childishly." The Minister rebuked him. "Look at the positives. With you backing, the Ministry can do a lot for our side."

"You don't need me to do your job. However, it seems you are worried more about your position rather than the situation we all are in. You just need my support to strengthen your hold onto your chair and after you have achieved that, you will not think twice before discarding me like a broken toy." Harry spat with fire in his eyes. This was going nowhere. How in the world was Harry supposed to get the Ministry on his side?

"Don't judge me." The Minister shot back with outrage. "You are just a boy, only your name has weight. Without it, you are _nothing_."

"And you are planning to use it to your advantage." Harry retorted. The Ministry had drawn a lot of flak due the earlier debacle which had happened after the assault launched by Voldermort. Everyone had raised questions about the Minister's inaction, threatening his position as a minister. "I will not be your poster boy or the _chosen one_ as you called it earlier. However," Harry raised his hand to stop the Minister from interrupting him. "However, I am ready to support the Ministry, support you." Harry ended evenly.

The Minister's angry look vanished replaced by surprise. "You will?" He asked quietly, not believing what he was hearing.

"Yes. But you need to give me a reason to do so." Harry decided to play his cards. "You are a lot better than Fudge. You know how to fight and initially I thought you were the right person for the job. However, you are following the same flawed path that Fudge followed. You want to strengthen your position? Do something to help our cause."

"I don't need to take orders from _you_." The Minister said with anger.

"It's not an order. I am only suggesting what you can do. If you manage to get your act together, the dark side will have a tough time fighting against us. Your position has a lot of power and you can do things that no one else can. I have nothing against you. I know it's difficult to look good in times of war and people expect you do things which are impossible to implement. Even the slightest misstep would put your position in jeopardy. However, I believe you can do it. You won't even need my support. That's all I have to say to you. I hope you at least consider what I have requested of you." Harry left without looking back leaving the Minister to think over what he said.

Harry found Percy outside the door, looking at him blankly. It seemed that he was hearing at the door and had heard every word. Harry didn't care and just ignored him and walked away. Harry was beginning to hate himself. He had resorted to flattery and manipulation to get across his message. The very things he despised in other people. It was so unlike him. What was happening to him?

***B***

"Where are the girls?" Harry inquired, after returning from the Ministry.

"They went to Diagon Alley along with mum." Ron explained, rolling his wand in his palm. He was sitting next to the window staring out towards the fertile meadows. He looked bored with no one to accompany him. Bill was working in Gringotts while Charlie had gone to a local dragon reserve which was under construction, to give his advice. Mr Weasley was at work while the twins were attending to their joke shop.

"Why didn't you go along with them?"

"Mum was going to buy new robes for Ginny for becoming a prefect. She wouldn't allow me to roam around on my own so I decided to sit it out." Ron said dejectedly.

Harry chuckled "You look as if you are having second thoughts."

"Go away" Ron said returning to look out of the window. Harry went upstairs to change up and refresh himself. As soon as he entered his room, something vibrated in his pocket.

Not again! It was broad daylight now so he couldn't go. He was feeling tired anyway. However, all his exhaustion disappeared when he pulled out the portkey and looked at its display.

_Location: Diagon Alley_

_Enemy Count: Fifteen_


	14. The Ministry Transformation

A/N: Quite a few followers I have managed. It makes me feel like Voldermort. No! I didn't mean that! Hmm… I am acting like Ron. Anyway, the next chapter is ready to read. Enjoy!

* * *

The Ministry Transformation

* * *

He had to go. It didn't matter what Lance said. He could not ignore this threat hanging over his friends and Mrs Weasley. He would not be able to forgive himself if something happened to them.

Without sparing a thought, Harry apparated to Diagonal Alley. He appeared in a small crevice hidden from view. To his surprise, everything was normal here. Was it just a false alarm?

Harry decided to wait a bit longer before coming to a conclusion. Anyway, it was pointless carrying out an attack in broad daylight. What could be gained from this? No matter what their goal could be, it was too risky. He could see some Aurors moving among the crowd as well.

Harry carefully examined the crowd trying to see any inconsistencies; anything out of the ordinary. A cursory glance gave a sense of normalcy but on close examination he noticed a few discrepancies. He spotted a man standing perfectly still in a corner next to the sports shop. At first, it looked as if he was just loitering around but his stillness made Harry feel uneasy. What Harry found more peculiar was his face. It was completely blank, devoid of any expressions. As if he was wearing a mask. That's it! He was _actually_ wearing a mask. On closer look, he noticed the person was looking at someone. Tracing his gaze, he found another person, sitting at the foot of the steps of Gringotts. He was unmoving as well and wore a similar mask.

In this way he tracked thirteen men positioned randomly around the street, each one looking at the next one. There stillness indicated that they were waiting for something, but what? And where were the other two? Where they death eaters? They had to be. There was no other reason for them to go to such trouble.

First he needed to ensure that his friends and Hermione were safe. He put on his mask and walked briskly to Madam Malkin's hoping to find them. Unfortunately, they were not there. He knew of only one clothing store. He walked to the centre and looked around for a shop where they could be. And then, all hell broke loose.

The Alley was filled curse fire and screams. Harry fell to the ground and tried to see what was going on. The people he had noticed earlier were replaced by masked death eaters who were firing curses around them, at random targets. He could also identify spell fire coming from the roof of two buildings. So they were death eaters after all.

Surprisingly, they were only using non-lethal curses. That was strange, when did they start caring for human life caught in the crossfire? They didn't and never would. It started to make sense to Harry. They were here to cause chaos and draw as much attention to themselves as possible. They seemed to be a diversion team distracting their adversaries; but from what?

There was total bedlam all around; most of them not even bothering to fight back, just running to a hole to hide into. Those who retaliated ended up getting stunned or injured from behind. Each one of the Death eaters held their ground, their carefully planned position making it difficult for a counter attack. This seemed to be a well thought out strategy.

The Order had not yet arrived. Where the hell were they? Harry decided not to intervene since no one was in any mortal danger. Finally, he spotted whom he was searching for. They were in a small store that Harry hadn't noticed, peeking through the window. Harry sighed in relief seeing that they were safe. They _were_ safe.

Ginny and Hermione came running out while Mrs Weasley tried to call them back. This was not good. He had to do something. He couldn't fight back with such a formation of death eaters. It was impossible to maintain a three sixty degree vision which was required to fight them off. He had to look for another way.

His eyes fell on a death eater standing closest to him. Yeah, it was suicide but there was no other option. He wouldn't stand a chance if he went against them as he was now. He disillusioned himself and crawled towards his target. He still wasn't able to apparate while disillusioned. He transfigured his own clothes into a black cloak and conjured a death eater mask.

As soon he was standing right behind the death eater, he disillusioned him first and then stunned him, appearing in his place. It was so fast that one had to be looking at them closely to notice the switch. He bent down for the wand the death dropped and snapped it. He needed to break the chain of death eaters or else it would be very difficult to beat them.

First, he needed to deal with the roof support they had. He observed two death eaters firing down at the crowd; or what remained standing. He took careful aim and discretely fired silent stunners at the two death eaters on the roof. He hit both the targets; one went down in a heap, while the other, to Harry's horror, toppled over the roof falling straight to the ground which was twenty feet below. However, his fall slowed down after his shoulder hit a window ledge. The fall didn't seem fatal; at least that's what Harry hoped.

It appeared as if Harry's _treachery_ went unnoticed. He looked around to see Hermione and Ginny take out a death eater. Hermione was playing defence while Ginny was on an outright assault. They were defending two kids who were crying behind them. Harry found that he was standing nearest to them, their wands raised towards _him_; an unexpected turn of events.

They were quickly onto him, sending a stream of curses at him. Harry just apparated away since he didn't want to return fire. He ensured that his apparition was with the twist and without any silencing charm. Harry appeared on the roof where the one of the death eaters laid stunned. He broke his wand and began picking the death eaters off one by one.

Realizing that they were being butchered, the death eaters finally started to move out of position, some of them trying to return fire in Harry's general direction. Harry ducked and brought up a shield to ensure his safety.

In the distance, Harry saw a group of Aurors running towards the source of action. He could make out Kingsley and Tonks among them. Why were they so late? Two death eaters running in their direction were disarmed and knocked out without wasting a breath. The remaining just admitted defeat and dropped their wands. What was going on? Harry was unable to comprehend what was going around him. One of the Aurors spotted him but before he could alert the others, Harry disapparated.

***B***

"Something is wrong. Why are they so late?" Ron said worriedly, pacing the floor. "I should have gone with them."

"I am sure they would be fine." Harry said calmly. He knew they were safe, otherwise he would have had joined Ron as well.

"Should I go to Diagon Alley to check on them?" Ron asked Harry, looking for support; which he didn't get.

"I don't think that is advisable. If something had happened, we would have been informed right away."

"How can you be so calm about this?" Ron asked with annoyance.

"There is no point getting worked up over things that might not have happened. We-" Harry was interrupted by a sound at the door. Ron practically flew to do the door, where he found his family entering, in one piece.

Ron's worry transformed into irritation. "What took you so long?"

"We come through hell and that's the welcome we get." Ginny muttered. Mrs Weasley just hugged Ron, leaving him confused. Hermione stood behind them with a pensive look.

"We will tell you when everyone has gathered." Mrs Weasley stated. Ron tried to ask something but his mom's raised hand silenced him.

A few hours later, everyone was sitting at the table trying to have lunch, but no one had touched their plates yet. There was an uncomfortable silence hanging around them.

Ron couldn't take it anymore. "Get on with it, will you?"

"Diagon Alley was attacked." Ginny announced, which drew a gasp from Ron, while the others remained silent. They knew it already. Harry, on his part, just tried to look shocked. Acting wasn't his forte though and he was glad no one was looking at him.

"What happened?" Ron whispered, while the others looked on with interest. Even they didn't have the details.

Hermione dove into the explanation. "We had just finished buying Ginny's robes, when we heard commotion outside the store. Looking through the glass door we found that a few death eaters were throwing curses around, trying to take out as many civilians as possible. Any who tried to resist was put down as well. Luckily, they were not using any lethal curses."

Ginny took over. "We decided to stay put since no one was in any real danger. However, we saw a woman getting stunned, leaving behind two small children. We had to do something. They would have got hurt either by spell fire or the stampede that followed. We ran out and covered the children, trying to block any spells coming our way. We also managed to take out a death eater who was trying to take us out."

Everyone smiled at that with a proud look on their faces. "I bet that would make it to the newspapers." Fred presumed.

"Our little sister is going to make us proud." George announced with a puffed chest.

"Oh no! Ron has infected my dear brother." Fred exclaimed pointing at George. Everyone chuckled in spite of the sombre mood. They really did know how to bring a smile on someone's face even in the darkest of times, Harry thought.

"As we were saying," Hermione continued, slightly peeved by the interruption. "…we finished off the death eater and found another one looking in our direction. He didn't even raise his wand to fight back when we threw curses at him and he just disapparated. As soon as he was gone, a death eater suddenly appeared, where the previous one was standing a moment ago, knocked out on the ground. It seemed that there was a disillusionment charm on the fallen death eater, which was lifted. We decided to take the children to safety since there was no danger nearby. Before we could even move there was a series of spell fire coming from one of the rooftops, taking out a few death eaters with great accuracy. Seeing that they were being crushed and were standing out in the open, they made a run for it. However, their escape was cut-off by the oncoming Aurors who made quick work of them. Surprisingly, the rest of them surrendered. The death eater on the roof disapparated before the Aurors could apprehend him."

"There is something I don't understand." Harry put forth with genuine curiosity. "Why didn't everyone apparate away to protect themselves or why didn't the death eaters disapparated to escape capture? Any why were the Aurors so late to show up?"

"It's very simple actually." Hermione explained with her usual know-it-all tone. "There were powerful anti-apparition wards placed around Diagon Alley, covering the whole street."

Harry looked shocked. It seemed that he had unknowingly, let slip one of his skills. Hope it didn't reach the ears of the enemy.

"That's right." George agreed with a serious tone. "We tried to apparate away with the under aged students in our store but we could not do so. We decided to barricade the store and gave refuge to anyone who came running in our direction."

"However, this is not the whole story. Let me enlighten you with the facts that I noticed." Hermione went on with a meditative look. "I believe that the whole thing was planned out. The positions that the death eaters had taken were strategically chosen, giving them a massive advantage over any retaliation from our side. The few Aurors who were patrolling around were taken out first. Then they began taking out civilians at random and putting down any resilience from our side. They caused absolute pandemonium among the people who were stuck in the street. I feel that this was only a diversion, what with the wards and non-lethal curses."

"You are actually right, Hermione." Mr Weasley nodded. "This attack was used to mask their original goal; to infiltrate the ministry." Everyone gasped, bar the Order members. "However, the diversion ended too early for their liking and the Ministry was able to ward off the attack with minimum casualties. They even managed to capture around twenty five death eaters in the process."

"Where were you when this happened?" Ginny asked curiously.

"I was in my office doing my work, without even realizing what was going on." Mr Weasley admitted with a sheepish smile. "When I came out, the death eaters had already been apprehended. Later I learned that the death eaters were trying to force their way in through the floos and the lifts but were soon detected. All exits were sealed and the Aurors present within the Ministry overpowered them with the help of the Order members who had managed to arrive in the nick of time. There were only two casualties among the Aurors. The rest had minor scrapes and wounds."

"Oh! I am so glad you are safe." Mrs Weasley exclaimed hugging her husband. She quickly pulled back and asked with a worried look. "What about Percy?"

"As if we care" Ron said nonchalantly but there was a hint of worry in his eyes as well. Mrs Weasley glared at him.

"He is fine. I saw him after the attack." Mr Weasley assured her.

"I just realized something." Bill said thoughtfully "If there were wards around Diagon Alley, how did the death eater who was taking out his own people, disapparated? Was he also part of the plan to confuse us?"

"I don't think so." Ginny disagreed. "He must have been rather powerful to overcome the wards. Also, I heard Kingsley say to one of the Aurors that wands of two of the death eaters had been snapped. One of them was the already stunned death eater that we both saw earlier. It won't be wrong on our part to deduce that the death eater, if we could call him that, was definitely on our side."

"I thought breaking a wand was a serious offense and against wizarding laws even though if the owner was a death eater." Charlie mused.

"I agree but I would rather prefer a wandless death eater. They don't deserve a wand anyway." Ron stated firmly.

"You know, it could be possible that he could be a spy amongst the death eaters." Bill supposed. "However, I don't think the Order is aware of anyone from our side within You-Know-Who's circle."

"If that is the case, it would be very important to try and contact him and get him in the Order." Mr Weasley suggested.

"We neither know his identity nor do we know what his intentions are. I think we should just wait and watch and let him make an appearance." Charlie pointed out. Unknown to everyone, Harry had a discreet smile on his face. Oh! He was loving the mystery around him.

"Speaking of the Order-" the twins began but were interrupted by Mr and Mrs Weasley.

"Not yet." The twins held an expression of utter disappointment, which they tried to overdo by pouting their lips and making puppy eyes, giving them a comical look. The Burrow was once again filled with laughter.

***B***

Harry returned from his training – after being berated by Lance for his indulgence in yesterday's situation – to find everyone having breakfast. He was famished and joined them at the table after washing up.

"Good morning Harry, seen today's edition of Daily Prophet?" Hermione enquired.

"Good morning. I stopped reading them a while ago. Why? I bet the whole paper would be talking about yesterday's twin strikes." Harry surmised.

"That's true." Charlie agreed with a proud smile. "There is even a mention of Ginny and Hermione in it."

"… _Two witches from the school of Hogwarts displayed such an act of bravery that deserved appreciation of the highest level." _Fred intoned with a funny imitation of an aristrocatic voice, reading from the paper. "_They fought with valour, without any consideration for their personal safety, to protect two children who were caught in the mayhem that had ensued. They even managed to take out a few death eaters in the process. Their gallantry was commendable. Later, it was learned that they were friends of Harry Potter – Hermione Granger and Ginevra Weasley. When questioned about their skills, they informed that it was due to the training imparted on them by Harry Potter himself. It is left to be said how skilled the Boy-Who-Lived is…"_

A red faced Hermione said to Harry "Quite melodramatic, don't you think? Also we just took out one death eater. Anyway, what I was trying to tell you was that all of yesterday's account was from page two onwards."

"How come? What could be more important than what had happened?" The looks that the Weasley siblings were shooting at him gave him a clue. "It's not about me is it?" Harry asked with dread. There were a few nods. Harry asked with aggravation. "What did I do? As far as I am aware, I haven't done anything to draw anyone's attention."

"Well, you see, it seems that the Daily Prophet somehow learned that you were the new Head Boy of Hogwarts." Bill informed him.

"But how?" Harry asked, slightly relieved that it had nothing to do with his other activities.

Everyone stared at the twins, who had sheepish smiles on their faces. "It's our fault. We decided to make some badges for Hogwarts with your name on it."

"What do they say?" Harry asked with a small smile playing on his face.

"There are a lot of variations, charmed onto the badge. 'Big Head Boy' and 'Hairy Head Boy' are some of them." Fred explained. Harry chuckled. They never ceased to amaze him. "You are not mad at us?"

"Why should I be? You are the best." Harry praised them.

"We knew it along." The twins held smug looks.

"However, I would request a fifty percent share of the profits you get from those badges." Harry said with an air of a businessman.

"Done" The twins agreed.

Hermione looked curiously at Harry. "Are you not disturbed by the report about you in the Daily Prophet? It says here that your selection was due to favouritism and that you used your name and wealth to buy your way to that position. The article also contains a series of snippets from various purebloods badmouthing about you."

"I am not concerned about what others think about me. Not anymore. If the people around me have faith in me and believe in what I am, then that's all I need." Harry stated, dismissing Hermione's curiosity. Everyone was in awe of his maturity and wisdom.

Harry wondered how only a few words could have such an effect on the people around him. The words came automatically to him; he didn't even need to think over what he was going to say. It didn't use to happen before. Something was changing within him.

***B***

Only a week remained. He was dying to go to Hogwarts and was getting bored of nothing to do. He had so much time on his hands that he even managed to read the books that Lance and Hermione had given him. Not that they were uninteresting but reading books was not something he preferred. Ron was busy with his training and as the days of their departure neared, his training period increased exponentially, leaving behind a very tired Ron. Quidditch was a rarity what with everyone occupied with their daily routine. Hermione was buried in her books and all his attempts to drag her out failed miserably.

The portkey vibrated a few times but none of the alerts agreed with the limitations that Lance had set on Harry. His training was moving along smoothly but Harry didn't fail to notice the deterioration in Lance's health. He seemed to move more sluggishly and looked as if he could fall any moment.

His own physique had improved a bit and he finally managed to fill out the oversized clothing his aunt had bought for him earlier. However, his body still dwarfed in comparison with the likes of Charlie or Ron.

However, it was not all that gloomy. Harry found Ginny to be nice person to talk to and fun to be around. He had never really talked with her initially but now they conversed with such ease as if they were long-time friends. They even played chess, and to Harry's delight, winning most of the games. He teased her relentlessly until she threatened him with her Bat-Bogey hexes. Harry had told her that she was still under age and he had the upper hand to which she had reminded him that they would be returning to Hogwarts soon. That shut him up.

***B***

Something changed in the Ministry. Or someone. The impossible happened.

After the attempted infiltration in the Ministry, new measures had been introduced to improve the screening process and security had been increased. Auror training was given priority and wages had been increased to make it an attractive employment option. Full scale hiring was taking place and a huge training ground was acquired to meet the needs of the heavy recruitment. The Ministry was in the process of creating a standalone team with their own headquarters situated in a secret location. All experienced Aurors had been chosen to be a part of that team.

The people who were arrested previously on flimsy grounds, including Stanley Shunpike, had been released after being judged by an unbiased hearing. The hearing process was fast tracked to cater to the number of arrests the Aurors managed to make.

Each of the Ministry employees was scanned and intense background checks were carried out to identify any supporters of the dark side. To their surprise, they found twenty nine employees with irrefutable evidence against them. The Ministry managed to apprehend eleven employees while the others were on the run.

Spontaneous raids were carried out in homes of suspected death eaters. However, success was very limited since everyone was on guard now. Knockturn Alley and many other suspicious locations were closely monitored for any suspect activities. Shops were searched thoroughly to look for dark objects and were confiscated when found.

Pamphlets and handbooks were distributed at all important locations to raise awareness among the people. Impromptu training sessions were carried out to teach the common public about self-defence. Patrolling had been increased to keep an eye on the neighbourhood.

The Ministry was also in the process of trying to freeze all death eater bank accounts and were in talks with the goblins to allow such a task. The goblins had initially refused to do so but it seemed that they were only buying time and would relent soon enough.

Mediators were sent to different parts of the United Kingdom to build a relationship of trust with other intelligent magical beings including giants, vampires, centaurs and werewolves. However, no success was forthcoming yet. A new department was opened in the ministry called Werewolf Support Services to offer aid to those inflicted with the condition. This was the topic of discussion at the dinner table in the Burrow.

"I have been asked to lead that department and reach out to the other werewolves." Remus informed them. "Actually they are just afraid to approach them themselves."

"I think this will do well for our cause. We might be able to tilt the support of werewolves, that You-Know-Who enjoys, in our favour." Bill pointed out.

"And if this works out, the other magical beasts would soon follow their lead and come to our side." Charlie said, nodding his head.

"You know, even if we manage to put them on the sidelines and away from the war, it will give us a huge advantage." Mr Weasley said.

"I have taken up the job." Remus announced. Everyone congratulated him. "This would assist me in the task that I have been working on for a long time without much success. Now I would be armed with hard facts rather than flimsy promises."

"These changes in the Ministry have been so sudden; so unexpected, that I wonder what had caused it." Hermione said with a pensive look.

"You just need to look to your right for the reason behind such changes." Remus said, gesturing towards Harry. He had not told his friends about his run in with the Minister.

Hermione was throwing piercing looks towards Harry while the others looked curiously at Harry.

"Remus, I don't think it was me." Harry said in reply ignoring all the stares. "It is impossible that a few words could have such an effect."

"You are underestimating the power behind words." Remus countered.

"Will someone explain us what you guys are talking about?" Ron asked with annoyance. Remus filled them in with what had happened the day Harry had gone to the Ministry to give his apparition test.

"… then Percy took him away." Remus completed.

"What happened next?" Hermione asked Harry, all heads turning in his direction.

Harry sighed. "Not much. I just said the usual; that I will not play the part of a mascot for the Ministry. Only thing I said differently was that if the Minister got his act together, I might think about supporting him." Harry gave the incomplete truth. The part he left out was too difficult to explain. He couldn't even believe he had said that earlier.

"He would not do so much just for your support?" Hermione pointed out.

"That is what I'm trying to say, this is happening not because of me. Someone else is responsible for it." Harry said unconvincingly. At the back of his mind, he knew that was not true. It couldn't just be a coincidence that from the day Harry encountered the Minister, the changes started to happen. However, he agreed with Hermione. The reason was not enough behind such a transformation. It was as if the changes were pre-planned, as though everything was thought out in advance. Even if the Minister was looking for his support, it was impossible on his part to achieve this much in just two weeks, no matter how shrewd or brilliant he was. It looked as if someone else was pulling the strings. Someone, who had been waiting for the go ahead from the Minister; but who was it?

Any further conversation was interrupted by a Patronus, which came through the wall and went to Remus. This had to be bad news. After getting the silent message Remus turned to everyone.

"There was another attack." Remus said with defeated eyes. "Hogsmeade was targeted. The barkeeper of Hog's Head is dead."


	15. First Blood

A/N: Whoa! This 'Guest' reader has had it in for me since the beginning. I don't mind criticism, even if it's negative. However, I would appreciate that if it's negative, then it should at least be accurate. The reviews give an impression to the readers what the story holds for them and I wouldn't like readers to ignore my story due to incorrect feedback.

I can't send you a PM, so I would give you a quick reply here. William Weasley is rich but he is a distant relative. Voldermort cannot use the wand since the wand can only be used by the chosen one; a Weasley that is. There were only two instances of comparison between Ron and Harry. Also Ron has not defeated Harry yet, without Harry himself allowing it. That is all I have to say.

On with the story then. Enjoy!

Warning: Sensitive theme

* * *

First Blood

* * *

Everyone was silent; most did not know what to make of this news. Those who did were worried about the implications; including Harry.

"Was he targeted?" Fred asked with a confused look.

"Yes, it seems that way." Remus surmised.

"But why? What could be gained from it?" George asked with bewilderment. Remus shared a look with the Order members within the family, who nodded in response.

Before he could say anything, Hermione said quietly "The bar keeper was none other than Aberforth Dumbledore."

This drew a series of gasps and denials. "He had a brother?" "Are you sure?" "A Dumbledore could not look like _that_."

"It is true." Remus stated crushing all doubts raised by the younger Weasleys. "However, I am more interested to know how did you come to know about it Hermione? It has been a well-kept secret."

"I read about it somewhere in the library but didn't give it much thought." Hermione explained. "As far as I can recollect, he was also a part of the first Order of Phoenix."

"I still can't believe this. I had seen the Bar keeper in my fourth year." Ginny exclaimed in disbelief. "There seems to be no similarities at all between him and the Headmaster. Was he his half-brother?" Remus shook his head. "Then why is no one aware about him? Why has it been a secret?"

"Well, you see," Remus began but paused to look at the elder Weasleys, unable to determine how much to reveal. He didn't get any help this time since they held uncertain looks as well._ What the hell? What's the point in keeping information from them? They were in this war as much as anyone_, Remus thought.

"The thing is, Aberforth Dumbledore, had always preferred the shadows unlike your headmaster. Don't think that Albus kept away from him due to his nature; or that he was ashamed of having him as his brother. It was actually the wish of Aberforth to be left alone. He was not dark, not Aberforth. He shared the same passion to fight the dark side as his elder brother; but in his own way. Aberforth proved to be an integral part of the Order of Phoenix during the first Wizarding War. His contacts within the realms of enemy proved to be a great source of information. He had managed to form a network of spies, gathering intelligence for our side. Armed with it, we had managed to stall the progress of the dark side. He was a valuable member." Remus ended his monologue, which seemed to suit well for a burial.

"I believe, You-Know-Who might have thought that the recent foiled attacks launched by him were Aberforth's doing like last time and had made a move to eliminate him." Bill deduced. "How many death eaters were in Hogsmeade, Remus?"

"From what I have been told as of yet, there were five death eaters in all, according to the eye witness reports." Remus informed.

"Only five?" Harry held a look of disbelief. "His fighting skills weren't so good?"

"I don't know." Remus said doubtfully.

"He was a loner." Mr Weasley elucidated. "He rarely mingled with us, keeping his distance. In fact, we rarely saw him and hence hardly knew much about him. We had thought that his parents' and sister's death had affected him, explaining his state."

"They had a sister as well?" George exclaimed. "It seems that in our seven years at Hogwarts, we hardly knew our headmaster." Mrs Weasley gave him a hard look. "Six and a half years. Happy?" George corrected himself.

"So was Voldermort's deduction correct?" Hermione asked curiously, while some flinched. Harry just rolled his eyes.

After a pause, Mr Weasley replied since Remus kept silent, leaving the decision for any further disclosure to him. "Yes. However, as per what Albus had told us before, the network of spies will function without any setbacks even in such a situation."

"The war is really catching up with us, isn't it?" George said with downcast eyes; unlike his usual self. Mrs Weasley made a move to console his son but stopped after hearing the rest of what he had to say. "Who will buy are products? We will be ruined!"

A subdued chuckle was the only response to that weak attempt at humour.

***B***

"Look at this!" Hermione exclaimed, reading from the Daily Prophet.

"Another attack?" Ron asked with dread.

"No. The Ministry has assigned fifty Aurors to guard Hogwarts." Hermione summarized for the listeners. "This would make Hogwarts a fortress. We might even expect more attendance this year." She ended excitedly, unable to wait to leave for school which was only two days away.

"Do they have so many Aurors to spare for our protection?" Ron asked doubtfully. "I would have thought they would have been spread thin with all the attacks going on."

"There haven't been any for a while, Ron." Mr Weasley pointed out. "Also you are forgetting the heavy recruitment the Ministry is indulging in."

"Hope they don't chose numbers over quality training." Harry said.

"They will not." Mr Weasley replied. "Kingsley is looking over the recruitment and training. I am sure he will do a fine job."

"Well, that is good news." Ginny agreed, nodding her head.

"You might not realize this, but with the Ministry getting their act together, You-Know-Who and his followers would find it very difficult to move around and carry out their dark plans." Mrs Weasley pointed out. "This is a healthy improvement as compared to the first Wizarding War."

"I agree." Bill said. "Let's hope that this doesn't turn out to be just a momentary surge and they maintain their progress."

"The Minister seems to have turned into a hero overnight. He is being lauded all over the papers for his achievements and there is also talk about honouring him with an Order of Merlin for it." Mr Weasley updated them with the happenings within the Ministry. "A crowd of supporters had even gathered in the Ministry a few days ago to voice their appreciation and support for the Minister. It was only a fortnight ago when everyone was calling for his head."

"You are right about that." Hermione agreed. "I am tired of reading about the _glorious _Minister all over the papers; even the Quibbler has been singing his laurels." Turning to Mr Weasley, she asked "How is the Minister taking in all this?"

"Like any minister would." Mr Weasley said with a knowing look.

"Awesome!" Fred exclaimed while George nodded as if already knowing what he was going to say. "I think I have an idea to roll out a new product line." Everyone had an inkling to what that _new idea _could be.

***B***

"Today, you are going to learn to cast… the killing curse." Lance announced. He was standing on three legs. One of them was a walking stick, which was now strapped to his arm since his arm no longer had the strength to hold the stick.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Harry exclaimed in disbelief. "I won't kill anyone."

"Oh! I see." Lance said sardonically. "So you are going to poison Voldermort, or are you planning to put a knife through his heart?" Harry had no response to that. "Even if you tried these things, it won't work. It's not his body that is keeping him alive, it's his soul. Only a killing curse would be suitable enough to vanquish Voldermort; anything else will always fall short, giving him a chance to rise up again. You _need_ to learn to cast it."

"I don't think I can." Harry said fighting a lost cause. He knew he had to do it. However, even the thought of killing someone made him sick.

"You don't have a choice in this matter. It's like kill or be killed." Lance tried to enlighten him. They both stared at each other, testing whose resolve was the weakest among them. Lance won easily, again. He went to the corner, hobbling with his stick and pulled out a cardboard cut-out and dragged it to one of the walls. It seemed impossible that a corner of the room could hold so much stuff; magic was written all over it.

When Harry looked at the cardboard, he laughed in spite of himself.

"Ok, there is no need to laugh at my masterpiece." Lance said in a slightly affronted tone but with mirthful eyes. "I accept that it's not much but I would appreciate it if you do not insult my skills in such a blatant manner."

Harry just laughed harder, holding onto his sides. Lance just looked on with an amused smile. After Harry got hold of his bearings, he finally managed a reply. "You did this on purpose, didn't you? I think I know how your mind works; in the craziest of ways imaginable. So am I going to be practicing on it?" Harry asked, pointing towards the cardboard cut-out. On it, Lance had portrayed how Voldermort looked; or at least tried to. The end result was so comical, that Harry thought even he could have done a better job.

"Very perceptive, aren't you?" Lance noted with a grin. "Let's just agree with your silly little musings and move ahead. Yes, you are going to practice the killing curse on it. To cast it successfully, you would need pure hatred and the intent to kill."

"Would be a miracle if I manage it on the target you have prepared for me." Harry pointed out with a chuckle. "I can hardly stop laughing at it; let alone bring out the hatred within me."

"If you want to cast the curse successfully, the looks of your target should be disregarded. For now, try concentrating on the eyes." Lance advised.

Harry took a closer look at the target and was shocked to see the hate and rage envisaged within the red eyes of the target. The eerie eyes stood apart from the whole picture and still Harry hadn't noticed it. "That is some drawing Lance." Harry acknowledged, nodding his head. Lance just smiled.

"Avada Kedavra!" Nothing. "Avada Kedavra!" Nothing again. After four more attempts he was nearly spent and after the last futile attempt, Harry found himself on the ground. "It's useless. I can't do it."

"_Yet" _Lance corrected him. "I thought you were fighter. You can't give up so easily. But that's not it, is it? You really don't want to do it, right?" Harry just looked at his palms, unable to voice any reply. "It's ok to experience what you are feeling now. Learning to kill is as difficult as killing itself. Don't be too hard on yourself. Let's just end this here and move onto your physical training." Harry pulled himself up wordlessly and followed Lance's instructions on the basics of kick boxing.

***B***

They all were packed and ready to go. The four Hogwarts students and the rest of the Weasley family were all waiting in the living room for the old man. Ever since the start, the old man had been keeping the distance from Harry. He had started to order food to his room and hardly ever came down except to train Ron. This suited fine with Harry though. The old man was finally going to leave now; to the relief of Mr and Mrs Weasley. It had been rather difficult for them having him around.

The steps creaked and the old man glided down the staircase with a look of arrogance and a slight hint of relief. Everyone was lined up to greet him but he ignored all of them and approached Ron and ordered in a sharp voice. "Give me the Amber wand."

Ron looked confused and worried but didn't say anything. He just pulled his wand out and handed it over to his great-uncle.

"I, William Worsworth Weasley, deem the chosen one, Ronald Bilius Weasley, ready and capable to take possession of my wand. I bequeath the Amber Wand to Ronald Bilius Weasley who will, henceforth be the new owner of the wand." The old man decreed with a flat and emotionless voice, handing over the wand to Ron who took it involuntarily. "I have also willed all my wealth and properties owned by me in your name." He added as an afterthought.

"I am rich." Ron whispered, with a shocked look.

"Not unless I am alive." The old man said with a… smile. Harry was taken aback at the sudden change in the features of his face. Gone was the arrogance, the haughtiness, the patronizing look. He looked like any other old man who had lived too long for his liking. "I congratulate you Ron for taking over the wand. Use it wisely and always remember what you were before you acquired the wand." He advised with an intense gaze. Without preamble, he walked out through the door. Everyone stood rooted to their places, too shocked to move. Ron's great-uncle was already gone when they finally managed to come out of their trances.

"What was all that about?" Ginny asked. "And what was that cryptic message in the end?"

"You saw how he looked when he gave the wand over to Ron?" Fred pointed out. "It was as if his cruel mask was lifted to reveal the soft man behind it."

"I would have loved to have him as my great-uncle." George said wistfully. "Where did he go? Has he disappeared again?"

"I don't know." Mrs Weasley said with an unconvinced look. "He would come back hopefully. After all, he has been inducted in the Order."

"Oh…" George uttered in surprise.

"Ron, are you okay? You haven't said anything?" Hermione asked worriedly.

"What? Yeah… Yes I am fine." Ron said coming out of the reverie. "This is so unexpected. I didn't even have a chance to say goodbye to him."

"You will see him soon enough." Mr Weasley tried to assure Ron.

Harry had been silent throughout the whole episode. He was still not able to understand what had happened. What brought the sudden change? Was it only a coincidence that after handing over the wand to Ron, that the old man seemed to change into a good person? Will the wand do something to Ron as well? _I guess I'll just have to wait and see._

***B***

Harry walked into the great hall, a smile automatically coming to his face. _It's good to be back._

Earlier, they had apparated directly to platform 9 ¾ of the King Cross station, bringing Ginny along with them. The train ride was uneventful, bar the prefect meeting. It was a disaster to say the least. Harry had realized that the Daily Prophet was again successful in deceiving its readers. The prefects had looked at him with disdain and had ignored him during the whole meeting. Malfoy hadn't even attended it. Harry was not sure whether he had returned to Hogwarts or not.

Susan Bones was the Head Girl. If Harry thought about it, she was an excellent choice, after Hermione that is. She was also the daughter of Amelia Bones, the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. She, along with Hermione, had done all the talking while he stood back, observing the proceedings.

Harry quickly hurried to the middle of the Hogwarts table with his friends trying to keep up. His badge dangled on his school robes as if weighing him down. Harry had made it a point to enter the hall as early as possible. The hall was still filling up and no one noticed his entry to his relief. He quickly took a seat and observed the front of the hall. Harry's eyes quickly searched for the two new faces among the line of professors who were sitting behind the head table. There were none. He could see two seats waiting to be occupied. Hagrid was also missing. Harry turned around to his two friends who were sharing worried looks. Harry glanced over the crowd of students which seemed to be pouring in like a broken dam. Did Hogwarts have so many students? Will some of the students be left standing?

No such thing happened. After the doors of the great hall were closed, Harry found everyone to be seated comfortably without the need to magically lengthen the tables.

"It seems that every last student of Hogwarts has turned up." Hermione called attention to the huge attendance of students.

"Bar the dead." Ron said his bit with a sombre expression. Harry looked over to search for Colin but was interrupted when the trembling first years were brought in for the sorting.

It took longer than usual due to the number of first years. After being selected, the first years ran to their tables. One nervous Gryffindor even went to take a seat at the Slytherin table. The death glares that the Slytherins sent his way made him realize his mistake and he practically raced to the correct table this time. This drew some laughter, lifting up the mood a bit.

Professor McGonagall began her opening speech, standing behind the pedestal. "Welcome to another year of Hogwarts!" Her voice resounded around the hall. "In accordance with what happened at the end of the previous year," She paused to let the words sink in "I have been promoted to be the new Headmistress of Hogwarts." There was a respectable applause which died down quickly. "Before we begin the welcome feast, I would like to inform you about a few things." Ron groaned while Hermione rolled her eyes. "These are dark times and make no mistake, we are at war. Utmost importance has been given to the safety of our students. Mr White," She turned to look at her left, where a tall smart man with a soft face suddenly stepped forward, as if appearing out of nowhere. The eyes however, were sharp and attentive, clashing with his calm demeanour. No one had noticed him earlier, including Harry. "... and his team of fifty skilled Aurors would be ensuring that this castle would be under their protection at all times." Mr White nodded in confirmation. "You might be wondering why two seats are still empty and whether any professors have been hired or not?" Hermione nodded, in spite of herself. Harry stifled a chuckle. "Worry not, students. We have indeed acquired two new professors who, unfortunately, could not make it for the welcome feast due to some personal things they needed to attend to. Professor Grubbly-Plank will be taking the post of Care of Magical Creatures."

"Hagrid must be on a mission." Ron guessed.

"Also, I would like to welcome our new Head Boy, Harry Potter." The Headmistress looked at Harry, who stood up. There was a very weak halfhearted applause which faded away, replaced by murmurs. Everyone looked at him as if he had cheated them; deceived them. "And our Head Girl, Susan Bones." The applause that followed was staggering. It seemed that everyone in the hall, even the Slytherins, was trying to clap till their hands bled. Harry knew that they clapped not so much to support the Head Girl, but to convey their disapproval of his selection.

Harry mentally laughed at his current situation. Lance should have been here; then he could have seen that the task assigned to him to unite Hogwarts was difficult; very difficult indeed. It was challenge and Harry resolved to take it upon himself to complete it. His face broke into a smile which seemed to be plastered on his face. Try as he might, it stayed there. The students, who could see his face, stopped clapping and looked at him incredulously.

"We are also going to start something exciting, which would be revealed to you by our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher." The Headmistress went on. An excited burst of chatter filled the hall which lasted for a few minutes. "And finally, I would like to impress on you all that venturing into the Forbidden Forest is in fact, _forbidden._" drawing a few chuckles. "Mr Filch has informed me that a long list containing banned items has been placed on the walls near his office, which can be found easily if one follows the paper trail." This drew even more laughter, while Ron held a shocked expression. "Before I get accused for starving my students, let the feast begin!"

"Is it just me or did Prof- did the Headmistress just do a Dumbledore?" Ron asked incredulously ignoring the food in front of him. Everyone laughed around him, Harry among them. Ron, just realizing the food was there to be taken, quickly filled up his plate and ate… with some sort of table manners; which meant no more stuffing his mouth and not speaking with a stuffed mouth.

"It seems that the old man taught him something other than just duelling." Harry joked, while Hermione giggled.

"You know, I don't envy you anymore." Hermione said with a serious expression.

"You mean for being a Head Boy or for drawing flak for being one?" Harry asked with a smile.

"Is that a trick question?" Hermione asked. They both laughed while Ron looked on with a confused look, his meal overcoming his power to comprehend.

***B***

"Where is my bed?!" Harry exclaimed with astonishment. There were only four beds in his usual dormitory. He first thought was that he was in the wrong dormitory but when Neville and Ron came in behind him, Harry knew that was not true.

"What are you doing here?" Ron asked with a surprised look.

"If you haven't forgotten, I am a Gryffindor." Harry responded evenly, trying to suppress his pointless anger.

"A Head Boy doesn't sleep in the Gryffindor tower." Neville explained.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked with disbelief. "Do they expect me to sleep in the great hall?"

"No, you have your own quarters." Ron informed him.

"I have?" Harry held a surprised look. "Why didn't anyone tell me?"

"We thought you knew." Ron defended himself. "In the last six years, you should have noticed that the Head Boy or Head Girl was rarely seen in the Gryffindor tower."

"No I didn't." Harry responded scathingly. "I had too much on my mind to see where they slept. I am going to the Headmistress."

"What for?" Neville asked.

"To move my bed back here." Harry replied with a determined look. Without waiting for a response he left for the Headmistress' office.

He looked at the gargoyle which looked back at him, as if mocking him. Alright, he was letting his imagination run wild, but he looked foolish standing at the entrance, with no knowledge of the password.

"Mr Potter, what are you doing here?" Harry turned around to find the Headmistress looking at him curiously.

"Well I…" Harry quickly realized that what he wanted was so trivial, so childish, that he couldn't even voice it.

"Let's talk inside." The Headmistress approached the gargoyle which moved of its own accord. Harry followed her into the office and was slightly taken aback by the changed interior. Gone were the tinkling instruments, the thick books. The circular room held an air of calm and comfort. The _throne _was replaced by an ordinary chair, devoid of cushions. She took her seat and gestured warmly to the seat in front of the desk. Before Harry took the seat, he looked around for Dumbledore's portrait.

"I am afraid he has not occupied his portrait yet." The headmistress informed, pointing to a blank one with a blue background.

"Is that normal?" Harry asked worriedly, afraid that he might not see his late Headmaster, even if it was within a portrait.

"Yes, it does happen sometimes." She replied thoughtfully. "Alright, so what do I owe this pleasure?"

Harry was unsure of what to say. He had this fleeting thought of making a run for it but shot it down. "You see… well it's nothing really. I just… if it's not too much trouble…" Harry stammered his incomplete request.

"Out with it, will you?" She said forcefully, but not unkindly.

"I was hoping if I could sleep within my own dormitory in the Gryffindor tower?" Harry requested meekly.

The Head Mistress looked surprised. "What an odd request. I would have thought you would be more than happy to live in your quarters. It is your own personal room providing you privacy, luxuriously furnished and even a large bathroom. You are not happy with the amenities?"

"No, that's not it." Harry shook his head. "Actually, I care less about the luxury or the privacy. I just prefer to be near my friends. That's all I ask."

"You do realize that since you are a Head Boy, you will have to meet up with prefects of other houses. There is an office within your quarters which is supposed to be used for meetings. How will you manage that? In any case, I don't think being in your quarters will distance you from your friends. You will just be sleeping there and having meetings. You can spend the rest of your time within the Gryffindor common room if you want." She informed him.

Harry was feeling really foolish about all of this. He felt like a child throwing a tantrum for a little candy. The headmistress was right; by just sleeping in a different place didn't change anything. He ducked his head in shame. "I… I am sorry. It was very childish of me. Didn't take me long to let you down, did it?" Harry ended dejectedly.

"It's alright." The headmistress assured him with a motherly tone, surprising Harry. "In fact, I am rather pleased by your request, even though it's a _little _immature. How about this? You can sleep in the Gryffindor tower for tonight but from tomorrow onwards you would need to take up your quarters."

"Thank you." Harry said sincerely. He bid his goodbye and left. The Headmistress' faith in Dumbledore, even after his death, seemed to increase. She was really worried about how it would pan out for Harry. Even though she knew he could pull through, there was long road ahead of him. She wondered what could have Dumbledore possibly have achieved through this decision. Only time will tell.

***B***

Harry sat on the sofa, his legs outstretched, with nothing to care about in the world. At least he wished.

He was in the Gryffindor common room, observing the activity, or the lack of it. It was Sunday, the day to rest and to get ready for the classes which would begin from tomorrow onwards. The first years kept peeping and staring at him as if he was a showpiece but Harry didn't mind. He just smiled at the kids; well he was not too old himself. Surprisingly, they returned the smile as well, wide grins actually. As he looked through the students moving around, talking, or just spacing out, he felt that only the first years seemed to be on his side; their innocence playing a key role in it. He found strength through them since it seemed that he was up against the whole school; they ignored him, glared at him; even went as far as to insult him. It looked as if they had received personal training from Draco Malfoy himself, Harry mused. Quiet a hilarious thought that was.

Then it came. The alert. Harry shot up from the sofa and quickly made his way to his dormitory which he knew was empty. After closing the door behind him, he pulled out the portkey. The location was Mile End; enemy count was two.

Harry looked out the window; the sun was approaching the horizon, which lay in wait to engulf it. It was not dark yet, but he could handle two. He became the masked marauder and activated the portkey. It didn't work. He tried again. No go. What was going on? Then he smacked his head. He pulled out his own wand with the phoenix hair core. And he was gone.

Harry appeared in a quiet neighbourhood. Nothing appeared to be happening. There were a few rows of rundown houses along either side of the road; he was standing in an abandoned garage, hidden from view.

He moved out quickly trying to find the source of the alarm. There was some disturbance in one of the houses. He ran towards it looking for an entrance.

"… come here you woman… What the hell are _you_ doing?" Harry heard a harsh voice coming through one of the high windows.

"Looking for some food. I am starving." He heard another voice. "You can handle the muggles, can't you? Let's have some lunch after you are finished with them. It seems we have a tasty slice of steak to help us with."

Where the hell was the door? He saw it at last. He will not let anyone die, not now. He flew through the door and found a death eater in the kitchen, bent over pulling something out from the fridge, while his wand lay on the table. Harry made quick work of him and searched the house, looking for the other. He heard a muffled cry coming from the backyard. He dove through a window, twisting in the air and landing roughly on his shoulders but was up without a moment of hesitation. What he saw drained the blood from his face.

A young boy with an innocent smile on his face was playing on a swing at a distance away from the house. His mother was running to him, screaming for him to hide; to escape. It was too late though; before Harry could do anything, a jet of green light hit the boy, toppling him off the swing, falling down like a rag doll.

Harry was blinded with shock and he tripped, hitting his head on a rock, momentarily dazing him. He groped around for his wand, but the screams that filled the air stunned him.

"It's alright." The harsh voice mocked the screaming mother. "It's not going to hurt much. Your child is safe, I just helped him over to the other world; to hell that is. Oooh! You are a fighter, aren't you? I don't like to keep my friend waiting, so you better die quickly. The steak would get cold, you see." Every word pierced Harry's heart like an arrow, his hate boiling inside him. His hand touched the tip of his wand; grabbing it, he stood up and raised his wand at the death eater, his bloodshot eyes staring at his target. "It was really nice of you to cook it up for us. We really appreciate-" A green light hit the death eater in the ribs cutting his words off. He dropped down in a heap, falling on his face.

Harry suddenly realized what he had done. He had killed.

No, that's not true. He couldn't kill anyone. He didn't have it in him to do it. He couldn't even cast a Cruciatus Curse, as had happened during the end of his fifth year at the Ministry. Lance had told him that one needs to have enough hatred in the heart and the intent to kill. That's right. The curse lacked the intent, the hatred, didn't it? The death eater might just have been knocked out.

Harry slowly walked towards the body, NO, towards the death eater. He reached over to feel his pulse and turned him around.

He found two lifeless eyes, staring back at him. He had no pulse. No sign of life at all. He was a murderer.


	16. A Killer's Melancholy

A/N: Alright! My story is really catching some steam now, so hold on while you can! Thanks for the reviews; a great boost to my confidence they are. Here it comes!

* * *

A Killer's Melancholy

* * *

Harry suddenly felt light-headed, his vision blurred and his knees buckled. He fell back on his hands and crawled away from the dead body.

Harry had killed him. He was a killer; a criminal.

_NO! _His mind fought back. _He deserved it, he deserved to die._

That was not true though. It was never his place to decide whether one lives or dies, irrespective of their actions.

A soft groan pierced Harry's demented thoughts. Harry looked over at the woman who was lying on her back, still alive, but just barely. He could save her! That would at least redeem his soul. Even if it's a little bit.

He struggled to her, crawling on all fours. When he was next to her, all his hopes were shattered.

Her limp arms and legs were bent, contorted in impossible angles. A steady stream of blood was seeping out from her mouth, nose and ears. Her right eye ball just lay still in its socket. She had been under the Cruciatus Curse for over a minute and she was on the verge of death. Her other eye, the only part of her body that she could move of her own free will, focused at Harry, as if looking through a thick mist. Her lips moved but he couldn't hear her.

He sat next to her, taking her head in his lap, uncaring for the blood that stained his robes. He leaned his ears to her mouth to make out her last words to him.

"… my child, save him…" She said gasping for breath. She seemed to be on the brink of insanity, only the threads of love for her son, tying her to remain sane to protect her son; the son who was already dead. "He is a really… nice boy. He is quite a handful… sometimes but he behaves… Won't you save… him?"

"Yes, I will." Harry lied, but there was nothing else he could do. At least he could let her pass on peaceful. He really couldn't take it. All his training in maintaining emotional discipline was all for naught. He couldn't even see someone die. He was not ready for this. He was only seventeen damn it!

"Thank you… I am grateful…" She coughed some more blood. "I am feeling… really tired… I just… need to… close my eyes." One of her eyes closed and her chest stopped moving. Forever.

Harry lay staring at her face for a long time, at least that's what he felt, lost in the grief that threatened to consume him.

He heard a group of running footsteps approaching and then skidding to a halt. Harry didn't move or turned to look at them.

"Stop! Drop your wand!" One of them ordered. It was the Order as usual; coming after everything was over and done with.

Harry just looked at her face for a few more seconds, as if drinking in her features, trying to etch it in his memory. The person he had left to die. The mother whose son he had left to die.

He closed her other eye, pushed back her hair and gently lifted her head from his lap and placed it on the ground. With a last look, he disapparated.

***B***

"What do you mean he escaped?" Moody bellowed at the four members of the Order who had just returned from a simple mission, who cringed at the verbal assault. He was really getting tired of being the leader of the Order of Phoenix. He was not built for this. He enjoyed the action on the battlefield, the smell of blood, the fear, the anticipation. This was too boring, sitting behind his desk, listening to sob stories explaining how they failed.

"We… we were too late. Actually, we… we had some trouble finding the right house." One began timidly.

The others found strength and said their bits too. Anything to escape the wrath of their leader. "Then we saw a broken door and realized that it could be it. We had first setup the anti-apparition wards and then went in. There was a death eater in the kitchen, already stunned and tied up while his wand had been snapped." Moody looked at the speaker sharply, shutting him up.

Another one took up the report. "We searched the house but could find no sign of life. However, the backyard was a totally different story."

"When we ran out, we found four people, three of whom were dead; one of them was a death eater." Another one continued, as if saying something useful might save their skin.

"The-"

"Will you stop this?!" Moody yelled at them, who had been trying to listen to the volley of reports coming at him. "Are you trying to be a pain in the neck? Only one of you will speak."

After a pause, where the four members looked at each other, as if mentally deciding who was going to do the dreaded job, the _bravest_ one stepped forward. However, if one had looked closely, the _bravest _one had been pushed in the back by the two members standing beside him. "The… the fourth one was sitting down with one of the dead in his lap. He was a wizard as well since he was holding a wand."

"Not a death eater?" Moody asked curiously.

"No he didn't look like one." The speaker responded.

"Explain" was Moody's monosyllabic order.

"I mean, the way he had the dead woman in her lap and the way he had laid her head down after closing her eyes, it was so unlike a death eater. There was a sort of an air of melancholy around him." He looked at the others who nodded their heads in agreement. "We could feel the grief emanating from him, like a-"

"Stop being poetic and give me the facts, damn it." Moody seethed. _Who the hell recruited these twerps?_

"Well… yes of course." The speaker resumed, slightly flustered. "We had ordered him to drop his wand but he didn't seem to pay any heed to us. I believe he was the one who killed that death eater."

"Why didn't you take him out?" Moody asked in a deathly whisper.

"Well… we didn't…" the speaker stammered and the rest of them moved closer to each other. "He… he didn't look like a threat to us. However, I did cast the anti-apparition charm on him to prevent his escape."

"So how did he?" Moody continued his grilling with a low venomous tone.

The only weak response he received was, "He disapparated."

"He did, did he?" Moody asked looking sharply at the trembling men standing in front of him, ready to piss their pants. He heard a slight huff of indignation from his right but he ignored it. "Describe him. Tell me anything peculiar that you saw. Only facts though." He warned.

Their chosen speaker resumed. "It was past sunset so we couldn't see his facial features. We didn't even get a good look at him since he was crouched down and was not looking at us." Moody's eyes widened with anger, so the speaker suddenly hurried on. "He was wearing a blue cloak and I am sure he was not wearing a mask. He had short hair and could be medium heighted. And yes, his apparition was also very unique."

"In what way?" Moody asked with genuine curiosity.

The speaker was happy to oblige. "He disapparated while he was crouched on the ground. There was not even the required twist which is necessary for apparition. He also somehow managed to break the anti-apparition charm I placed on him."

"If it was cast correctly that is." Moody said, returning to his eerie voice. "It seems you have failed in your mission; both in protecting the muggles as well as apprehending a suspect. So what shall I do with _you_ all?" He picked up his wand, causing the four to gasp, and waived it, causing the four members to stumble back. The door flew open. "Get out!" He ordered. He didn't need to tell them twice. They were out in a flash with reflexes they didn't even know they possessed.

"Tell me again why I am an Order member?" One of the four said after closing the door behind them.

"I don't even understand who made him the leader." Another voiced his protest.

We are in hell and he is the devil lashing out at us." A third one said with a shudder.

"The debriefing session is more like torture to me; even worse than the Cruciatus curse. Not that I have been under one but there is no harm in the imagination."

Moody laughed in a way which could have even put a devil to shame. The four heard the laughter through the door and made a dash to distance themselves from him as far as possible, as if running for their lives.

Unknown to them, Moody had charmed the door to listen to their reactions.

"You get sick pleasure in bullying your subordinates, don't you? I wonder how you became the leader." Phineas Nigellus Black chastised him through his portrait. They were not at the Grimmauld place, but in a secret location.

"By default. It was never my choice. This leader stuff really pisses me off. _Someone_ needs to bear the brunt of my disapproval. I feel sorry for them." Moody said and then broke into a laughter that could have been heard all over the Order headquarters.

Yeah, he was _really _sorry.

***B***

Harry stood motionless in the Astronomy tower, looking calmly out towards the forest. Everything was only superficial however, since inside him, his emotions were in a raging battle; one side justifying his actions while the other side berating him for it.

At the back of his mind he knew it could have not been helped. He was no god. As he thought back, he did try his best but his lack concentration failed him. What if he had ignored the one in the kitchen and gone straight to the other death eater? What if he had searched the backyard first? What if…

_There is no point in thinking about what ifs, _his cold mind advised him. _What's done is done. Nothing can change it back. This could however, serve to be a reminder for you to do well in the future._

Harry had apparated in the tower since he was in no shape to face anyone. He was broken, marred and needed some time to think.

Using his Occlumency technique, he did his best to arrange his thoughts and emotions. After a few minutes he felt his mind to relax a little and his tormented eyes to soften. He left the tower and refreshed himself in a nearby washroom. He was shocked to see his reflection. He had forgotten to change back to his normal self. He removed his mask, undid the transfiguration on his clothes and increased the length of his hair.

He disillusioned himself and apparated directly in front of the entrance to his quarters, the location and password was already told to him by Hermione. He suddenly realized that he had done a successful apparition under the disillusionment charm, without even realizing it. Well, something good came out of it at least.

He opened the door and walked in after cancelling the charm on himself. He found himself in a huge oval room, furnished with comfortable arm chairs lining the wall. A warm fireplace crackled at one side of the room. There was an oval table in the centre of the room surrounded by twenty four empty chairs. There was a cupboard which Harry deduced, was used to hold refreshments or food to eat.

On both the opposite sides of the room, there were two doors, leading to their private quarters. Even those had passwords; his was given to him by the headmistress herself.

He was about to move towards his own quarters when the other door opened and Susan Bones came out. She was as surprised to see him as he was.

"What are you doing here alone?" Harry asked beating her to her own question.

"I just came here to retrieve my book. I am on my way back to the Hufflepuff common room." She said pleasantly, holding up a book. Harry gave her a small smile which she returned, rather shyly at that. "What have you been up to? Where were you last night?"

"I slept in the Gryffindor tower, with the permission of the Headmistress… I acted rather foolishly yesterday." Harry admitted with a sheepish smile. Susan just looked at him curiously but without asking for any explanation. "I wanted to move back to the Gryffindor tower permanently, so that I could be in company of my friends. Rather childish of me, don't you think?"

"I don't think so." Susan disagreed with a smile. "I feel that was rather sweet of you. Actually, it's really lonely here."

Harry looked away to keep her from seeing his blush. _Great! Emotional discipline fails again! And at the hands of a girl at that._

"So you are not going to stay here?" Harry looked at her impassive face, but there was a hint of sadness he could discern from her voice.

"You are trying to get rid of me, aren't you?" He joked with mirthful eyes while Susan giggled. "I am afraid that is not going to happen."

"No!" Susan exclaimed in mock dejection, playing along. "I was planning to have the whole quarters to myself. Oh! The disappointment…"

They both laughed and momentarily Harry forgot his ordeal he had earlier.

After the laughter died down Harry said with a grateful tone. "I appreciate you talking with me like this. Others have been rather… you know…" Harry left his sentence hanging while Susan nodded with a sad smile.

"I don't believe the crap that the Daily Prophet prints. If you had looked more closely, most of the members of the DA believe in you. We know you well enough to be deceived by some trash words." Susan said forcefully.

Harry smiled at the support she had for him. "Thank you. You don't know how much that means to me." After a pause, "Well, don't let me keep you waiting. I guess you have some reading to do." Harry said, gesturing towards the book in her hand.

"Okay. You are going to check out your sleeping quarters?" She asked him.

"Yes. If the looks of this room is anything to go by, I am waiting to see what surprise my room can throw at me." Harry mused.

"Get ready to be swept off your feet." She said with a chuckle, before leaving the quarters.

Harry just smiled; she seemed to be good company. He might enjoy staying here.

His room was great but the effect it had on him was diluted due to the plagued thoughts that returned to him. By just being alone made him brood over it. He left for the common room, unable to stand the loneliness he felt here.

***B***

Ron was showing off his wand, boasting about its strength and stuff. Harry chuckled to himself. Didn't take him long to bring the wand out. Thinking back, he couldn't really find fault with Ron's behaviour. He had always been in Harry' shadows, whatever fame earned was through Harry. He didn't have his own identity. Harry knew Ron disliked being weak, being poor. Harry had perceived in Ron a hunger for recognition, for appreciation. It seemed that Ron had found his wand to be the single source of light in the utter darkness surrounding him. Harry was happy for his friend. He hated it when Ron's jealousy came between their friendship.

Ginny and Dean were having a private talk in one of the corners of the common room, smiling bashfully at each other. Ginny seemed to have felt his gaze and turned to look at him, while Harry smiled back. He was glad that they found happiness even in these dark times.

Colin was staring out of the window with a blank look. Harry wondered what was going through his head. He looked so different, devoid of innocence and happiness. Harry could see a prefect badge pinned to his robes. Ginny had earlier told him that the female prefect in her year had transferred over to another school. So now they both were the sixth year prefects.

"Where were you?" Hermione asked, coming at his side.

"Checking out my quarters. It was nice but rather lonely." Harry replied.

"I didn't see you leave." Hermione said, eying him curiously.

"I guess you were too busy staring at Ron." Harry teased with a smile, which didn't reach his eyes.

"I was not." Hermione denied indignantly.

"You know, you have been doing a lot of staring lately." Harry asked casually.

"What… what do you mean? You… must be imagining things." Hermione flustered in her response and looked away.

"I guess I might be." Harry left it at that. He didn't want to make his friend uncomfortable. It was her secret to tell. "There is still some time for dinner, say what, we go to the _library_?"

"Sure." Hermione exclaimed jubilantly, missing the jesting tone of his friend.

However, before he could respond, Harry heard a commotion outside. He quickly went through the portrait to find Mr Filch standing with his cat, Mrs Norris. There were two prefects behind him, both from Ravenclaw.

"You are the Head Boy aren't you, eh?" Mr Filch asked Harry looking at his badge, who nodded in response. "The Headmistress has asked me to inform you that an intruder has been seen among the Hogwarts corridors. You need to secure each of the houses. I couldn't find the Head Girl, so I came to you."

"Alright, leave this to me. Wait here." Harry nodded at the prefects who didn't even acknowledge him. Harry turned back into the Gryffindor common room and with a 'Sonorus' he addressed them. "No one is to leave the common room. An intruder has been detected. All prefects bar the fifth year, report to me. Fifth year prefects, please try and maintain discipline here and carry out a head count. I want no dawdlers outside the common room." No one moved except Ron, Hermione and Ginny. He repeated forcefully "Prefects report to me now! We need to secure the castle." Slowly a trickle of the rest of the prefects reluctantly followed him outside the portrait hole. "Mr Filch, have the other houses have been informed?"

"Yes, they had been informed through their Head of the Houses. Gryffindor Head is not in the castle and hence I had to come." Mr Filch explained with distaste. These kinds of tasks were beneath. He would have rather preferred torturing the students.

"Thank you Mr Filch, you can leave this to me." Harry said confidently.

"Harry, we should go to the great hall." Hermione suggested. "Everyone might assemble there to await further instructions." Everyone nodded.

"I agree. Wands out. Let's go." Harry nodded as well and led the way to the great hall.

All the prefects had reported to the great hall. Even Malfoy, who had a mask of indifference on his face. The Prefects stood in a group, the Slytherins kept their distance though, while Harry and Susan stood a bit ahead of them. The three Head of the houses and the Headmistress stood in front of them. Mr White was also present, along with two Aurors standing at his side.

"It's come to my knowledge that an intruder has been detected." The Headmistress began. "He was sighted by a portrait."

"Any idea where the sighting was?" Hermione asked.

"Near Astronomy tower" The Headmistress replied.

_What? Was It he that the portrait spotted? _Harry thought.

"How does he look like?" the Ravenclaw prefect, Terry Boot asked.

"We don't have the exact details since the person in the portrait could not see the face." There were a few huffs from the Slytherin prefects. "However, he has been seen to be wearing a blue cloak. He also has close cropped hair."

It was Harry himself. So all this search was rather pointless but he had to keep silent to prevent revealing anything.

"That's some _clue."_ Malfoy mocked.

"Let me assure you, there has been no forced entry and all the wards are intact with no sign of intrusion. I suppose it could just be a false alarm and the person spotted might just be a student." Mr White said.

"I hope so." The Headmistress agreed. "In any case, we will carry out a thorough and systematic search of the castle. Let's move."

They searched for half an hour, checking out every nook and cranny of the castle, without getting lost that is, turning up empty handed. _Obviously._ They were searching for none other than Harry himself. He had just played along but had a tough time getting the prefect to follow his orders. That really riled him up but he didn't show it. He relayed his orders through Susan instead.

All in all it was a pointless venture.

***B***

Everyone had assembled in the great hall for their dinner, looking at the two new professors.

The Headmistress stood up in her seat, while the whole crowd turned silent. "Let me introduce you to our newest entries in our staff. She gestured to a tall old man wearing dark brown robes, who stood up to acknowledge her greeting. He had long greying hair which reached just below his ears. His dark black eyes, his pointed nose and the sagging cheeks gave him a rather menacing look. "Mr Aaron Hart, your new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher." Very few of them clapped, rest of them were too shocked to find the subject he was going to teach, even Harry. Everyone though that a younger person would be more suitable for such a job. "He has been appointed by the Minister himself." The Headmistress informed with an impassive face, but there was a hint of distrust in her voice. The students who were clapping earlier ceased to do so and everyone eyed the professor with venomous looks. The things that the previous Ministry appointed professor had done were rather fresh on their minds.

"Thank you for your _warm _welcome." He mocked them all with a smile, taking back his seat. The great hall burst into a series of murmurs of outrage and indignation, some blatantly gesturing in his direction. Professor Hart however, looked unconcerned.

The Headmistress turned to her right and then nodded at a middle aged man, possibly in his early forties who stood up as well. Short blond hair, an oval face, warm grey eyes and a small nose described his welcoming face. He was well-built and was of medium height. All in all, he looked extremely friendly. "Mr Phil Carson, your Transfiguration professor. He has come all the way from America to teach you." There was a round of applause for Professor Carson who just sat down without even a hint of acknowledgement. Harry looked at the other new professor, who just held a look of amusement on his face.

"Now, as promised, I will let Professor Hart to take the stage and reveal the thing planned out for you all." Saying which, she sat down.

Professor Hart walked over to the pedestal. He stood there observing the students, waiting for complete silence.

"I don't like the looks of it." Ron asked with trepidation. "Are we going to have a repeat of our fifth year?" No one replied and the question was left hanging in the air.

"Hello students." He began in his rich and sharp baritone. Harry heard Hermione mumble something like '…at least didn't address us as children…' The Professor paused before resuming. "The Ministry have been always concerned about the education you receive." There were a few snorts from the students. The professor seemed unperturbed and went on with a glint in his eyes. "And considering what has been happening in the world outside, only education is not enough." He paused while there were looks of confusion and some more murmurs. "You would need to learn to defend yourselves and protect others. We are amidst a war, which could anytime escalate into a full blown confrontation. We would need all the help we can get. And where better to look than at our descendants for support." There were a few gasps of surprise, shocked at what they were hearing. "And hence, to assist us in this goal, the Ministry has decided to get a new club started in Hogwarts; the Battle Club." All the students broke out into loud chatters of excitement and speculations on what the club could be about.

Harry looked at his friends who returned his look of surprise. This was totally unexpected; and that too from a Ministry employee.

"I cannot say much about it right now. All I can say is that it will be conducted every Saturday evening. Everyone above third year can register their names and can do so through the Head of the houses who would relay the list to me. And by the way, I am the new Gryffindor house Head." He ended and walked back to his seat, leaving the Gryffindor house shocked and the other houses hungry for more information about the club.

***B***

"You know, I was talking with Dean and he-" Ginny started.

"We don't want to hear about that!" Ron exclaimed, covering his ears. They were in the common room after returning from dinner.

"Shut up Ron and let me complete." Ginny retorted. "As I was saying, Dean received a letter from his dad, saying that there was an attack in their neighbourhood. Two muggles, a mother and his son were killed." Harry turned away to hide the pained expression that suddenly came over his face.

"Harry, what's wrong?" Hermione asked worriedly, unable to look at Harry's face since his back was turned to him.

"I'm alright." Harry said in a shaky voice. "It hurts when people keep dying around you and you can do nothing about it."

"I know. But you don't need to take it to the heart." Ginny advised in a soothing voice. Harry turned around after a minute and smiled weakly at her. He had managed to compose his expression and hide the agony beneath his mask. Hermione was looking at him curiously but he didn't meet her eyes.

"What do you make of the new professors?" Ron asked changing the topic, oblivious of the tense situation around him. Harry however, was grateful for that.

"We don't know much yet. Both seem to be rather mysterious." Hermione pointed out.

"We will just have to play the waiting game." Ginny mused.

***B***

He tossed and turned. The bed was extremely comfortable but his sleep was marred with a series of nightmares.

_The mother accused him of his child's death, of her own death; her haunted eye pulling Harry into the depths of agony. 'You let us die'_

_The death eater accused him of being a murderer, just like him. 'You and I, we both are the same." He said, but his lips didn't move. Nothing moved._

_Voldermort laughed and invited Harry to join his group since he qualified, meeting the minimum requirements. 'Wonderful. I am sure you would do great for our side.'_

_'We hate you. The Aurors are on the way.' His best friends told him, wand pointed at his chest._

_'I am so disappointed.' Dumbledore said with dead eyes. Lance standing next to him said in a ghostly voice. 'You have failed me…"_

"Nooo…!" Harry moaned, waking up from his sleep; if you could call it that.

No amounts of Occlumency helped him. He even tried the Pensive but that didn't work either. He had not slept for most part of the night.

He skipped the morning run and left straight for the gym. He had to talk to Lance, to confess his sin.

Lance looked at him from behind his desk, his gaze telling Harry that he already knew.

"I… I…" It was as if Harry had forgotten how to speak.

"It's alright." Lance said simply, without betraying any emotion.

"It's not alright!" Harry fought back, finally getting the ability to speak. "I killed a death eater. I am murderer. I am no different from them." He wanted to cry, to release the grief bubbling within him, but it seemed that his tear ducts had stopped to function.

Lance watched Harry in silence. He knew that no amounts of comforting words would ease the pain his ward was going through. He needed to try a different tack. "You remember that I once served the British Army. There had been wars, small conflicts. And I had killed; a lot. I was rather good with guns and I was praised for my marksmanship. I became the gun-trotting hero for my battalion. I was cheered, my achievements were lauded. But I was sinking. Sinking under the burden of deaths; the deaths caused by my gun. All their faces came back to me, to haunt me. I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown; my career endangered, my life nearly broken. However, Albus saved me again with his wise words. He spoke to me from experience. He told me that a fight or a war only ends when there is a losing side. And the losing side will have losses. He told me that I had killed to save the lives of the others and asked me think about the saved lives rather than the ones that are dead. There is no wrong or right in a battle. You kill because you have."

"But I had a choice. I could have just disarmed him." Harry shot back, as if trying to prove his guilt. "However, I lost control. My hatred overpowered me. I wasn't thinking. And then I… I…" He couldn't go on.

"You are right. You did lose control. But don't blame yourself." Lance spoke softly. "You have not committed a crime. It just happened. When one wields a wand, there is bound to be injuries, even deaths. There are many ways to die. A harmless stunner could kill a man, if he falls off from a height or hits his head on a rock. At least, the death eater died swiftly. You did not torture him to vent your hatred. I know you can never do such a thing. Your heart is too pure for such an act. You were just trying to save the muggles."

Harry doubted those words. Was his heart pure? He couldn't agree with that after everything that has happened. The words sounded too hollow to him.

"I didn't save them." Harry said in a whisper. "I let them die. The mother died in my arms, her last words pleading me to save her son; the son that I allowed to die as well. It was so difficult, to watch someone die. I felt so powerless, unable to do anything. My soul…" Harry's voice cracked unable to go on. Lance didn't know what to say. He felt rather powerless as well.

They were silent for a few long minutes. Harry was lost in his dark thoughts while Lance looked on dejectedly after failing to console Harry.

"Well, as now you are here," Lance began; deciding that the best way to help Harry now was to keep him distracted. "You will learn the last stage of the apparition techniques that I had prepared for you." Lance had found that Harry could now do a silent and invisible apparition as he had demonstrated when he had arrived at the gym. "Chain apparition."

Lance could only see a small hint of interest in Harry's eyes. Without feeling discouraged, Lance went on explaining it.

Lance hoped that Harry would somehow manage to pull through. There was a much more difficult path ahead of him.

***B***

"We have got double Defence Against the Dark Arts today as our first period." Hermione said reading from her timetable.

"Hmm… it seems we are getting first dibs at being taught by Professor Hart. Lucky us" Ron said sardonically. They were having breakfast in the great hall.

"How did you sleep, Harry?" Hermione asked, finding his raven haired friend rather silent this morning.

"Alright I guess." Harry lied. A hint of dark circles had appeared under his eyes and he felt tired and weak.

"You don't look so good." Hermione pressed on, with worried eyes. Harry hid his irritation, since his friend was just showing her care for him. She just didn't know where to draw the line.

"Thank you for the compliment." Harry joked but it didn't draw any laughter. He went back to his breakfast and ate it up. At least his appetite hadn't been affected.

On the way to their class, Hermione informed him. "We are going to have our first prefect meeting, aren't we?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I had Susan send out the summons. No one will come if I send them."

"It has been really tough for you, isn't it?" Ron asked, looking at him apologetically. "Have you… have you thought about resigning?"

Hermione had an outraged look but before she could say anything, Harry said calmly "I am not a coward to back down. I have been in much more difficult situations than this. I am sure I can handle this one as well."

His friends just looked at him with respect. Harry looked away. He was not worth their respect. _If only they knew…_

"This morning, while I was returning from the library, I overheard the Aurors talking about yesterday's attack." Hermione said with an excited look in her eyes; which dimmed when Ron inquired. "Why were they talking about it in the corridors?"

"I don't know." She said rather defensively and went on. "That's not important though. What I heard was that there was an unknown vigilante present at the crime scene, who had actually stunned one death eater, killing the other."

"A vigilante?" Ron asked, slightly confused.

"It means-" Hermione began.

Ron interrupted with an affronted look. "I know what it means. I was just thinking who that could be. Did you learn who he was?"

"No, it was a mystery to them as well." Hermione said.

Any further questioning ceased as they found themselves standing outside their DADA class. They were the first to arrive while the rest of the class lined behind them, with Ron in the lead. The door was closed and he stood undecidedly in front of it.

"What are you waiting for Weasel?" Malfoy spat from somewhere behind. "For someone to open the door for your sorry ass?"

Ron turned around pulling out his wand but his friends restrained him.

Together, Harry and Ron opened the door to enter the class and what they found drew their breaths away.

Professor Hart was standing behind the desk in a fight stance in front of them, a green light leaving from his wand. Not again!

This time however, it was sent in the direction of Ron, whose eyes widened in shock and he fell to the floor to avoid the killing curse coming in his direction. Hermione behind him however, didn't see it coming.

Harry watched in horror as the green light slowly approached his friend. It was as if time had slowed down and a series of thoughts raced through his mind.

_Was it a test_? was the first thought that came to his mind. He could not assume that; the evil look in the professor's face was trying to prove his assumption wrong as well.

There was nothing he could summon or move to block the curse. If it was indeed a killing curse, he didn't want her to die. There was only one way.

_Is it worth it? _His mind fought back. _You cannot risk the lives of everyone just to save only one._

Harry however, had already decided what he was going to do, disregarding the voice in his head. He was not willing to take a chance; neither was he going to stand back and watch her friend die. Two deaths were enough for him. If she died as well, there would be nothing left of him to save the world.

He moved in the green light's path without hesitation and closed his eyes as the killing curse hit him squarely in his chest.


	17. The Battle Club

A/N: I have seen that the viewership of my story drops to a fourth after the first chapter. Rather disheartening to say the least. So I have added a sneak peak in the first chapter to build interest in the readers. Feel free to check it out. Anyway, here is chapter seventeen!

* * *

The Battle Club

* * *

Everything was dark. Wherever he looked, he could only find darkness. Yeah, that was because Harry's eyes were _closed_.

"Harry, are you alright?" A female voice called out from behind him.

Harry opened his eyes to find Ron looking at him with a surprised look. The professor had already taken a seat behind the desk. He turned around to find Hermione's worried face and curious classmates looking at him.

"I am fine." Harry said flatly. So he was right after all; it was another test. He was kind of in a habit of being at the receiving end of these outrageous tests. Harry turned around to look at the professor but Ron had already begun lashing out at him.

"What was that all about?!" He yelled at the professor rather disrespectfully.

The professor rose from his chair and looked murderously at Ron, causing him to step back and the others to gasp. Harry just observed his professor.

"It was just a firework spell." The professor said in a strangely calm voice. "You seem to have excellent reflexes Mr Weasley."

Ron's face held a look which had a confused mixture of pride and anger. His pride won. "Thank you" Was all Ron could manage.

Professor Hart turned to the students who were still standing outside the door and said. "I am not going to eat you all. Get in."

The students filed in, looking warily at the professor as if expecting him to throw curses at them. They didn't know how true their train of thoughts was.

Harry, Ron and Hermione went for a desk in the middle and sat down. Hermione kept shooting smiles at Harry, leaving him a bit confused. Harry watched the professor as he examined the students as they filed in. There was something strange about him; something familiar. Harry saw a chain hanging around the professor's neck but the locket was hidden within the robes.

After everyone was seated, the professor began. "Five points to Gryffindor for the exceptional display of reflexes." Ron looked at everyone with a smug expression which disappeared when the professor continued. "Ten points from Gryffindor for showing disrespect to a teacher. And an additional five point deduction from Gryffindor for a senseless sacrifice."

To everyone's surprise, Hermione shot to her feet and seethed. "Senseless you say? I would say that was nothing less than a selfless and heroic act." She looked at Harry with a gaze that conveyed appreciation and then looked back at the professor with eyes as hard as ice. "I thought that was a killing curse and I felt I was going to die. But then Harry stepped in front of me, to give his life away to save mine. How could you deduct points for such an act of valour?"

"It's because it was very foolish of Mr Potter. Suppose it was a real killing curse and Mr Potter had died at your feet. Would you have been able to dodge my second killing curse? Won't his sacrifice be rather pointless?" Most of them gasped at the horrific supposition. Hermione was left speechless by this response, which was a commendable feat. "Another five points from Gryffindor for the cheek."

Harry chuckled dryly, which echoed in the near silent room. Everyone looked at Harry as if he had gone crazy. "Has anything amused you, Mr Potter?"

"Yes, in fact there is something. I might not be wrong to presume that our house is already running in negative points and the school year has only just started." Harry stated unemotionally.

The professor just smiled ominously while the others looked at Harry as if he had grown an extra head. "Right, let us begin with our lessons unless anyone else wants there house to lose points." He looked around as if expecting someone to raise their hand. "Alright, take out your books and open to page 297." There were a series of groans. Harry heard Ron mutter something like '…not another Umbridge…' while Hermione mumbled '…page 297! I haven't even reached there yet…' The professor went on. "Also bring out your wands and keep them ready." Everyone held confused expressions on their faces. Why was a wand required along with an open book? However, everyone followed the instruction and after a minute, each of them had page 297 opened in front of them and a wand at hand. "Now as every one of you are ready to begin, let me explain what you are supposed to do. You need to read everything thoroughly from that page for ten minutes and after that you are going to answer some questions I'll be giving out on parchments." Most of the students looked at each other in confusion. It was too simple. Harry knew something was being left unsaid. "Remember, anyone who fails to answer less than half the questions correctly, will no longer be allowed to sit in this class. No matter who you go to complain about me, even if it's the headmistress, I still won't allow the failures to attend my class. Is that clear?" Most of the students yelped in astonishment while the others shared disbelieving looks. "Begin"

Everyone quickly went to their books trying to make the best use of those ten minutes. It seemed to everyone that this test just required memorizing skills. _How wrong they were._

With less than a minute into the reading, suddenly one of the girls at the back plopped her head on the table; inviting a shriek from the girl sitting next to her. Very few, including Harry, were able to notice the stunner cast from the professor's wand. "Ah! Miss Dunbar. You haven't been paying" another silent stunner went in the direction of Malfoy, who blocked it easily. "…any attention." It looked as if the wand in the professor's hand was working on its own accord and the spell was cast silently without him breaking away from what he was saying.

Suddenly everyone realized that it would not be as easy as it seemed.

Everyone eyed the Professor while trying to do their best to read the page. This was rather difficult. Harry stole a quick glance at Fay who was still slumped at the table, no one even bothered to revive her. Everyone was too worried for their own safety. Anyway, Professor didn't say anything about not reviving the stunned students. Harry couldn't let a student, and that too of his own house, unable to attend such an important class.

"Two minutes have" another silent stunner which was blocked hastily by Ernie Macmillan "passed and only eight minutes remaining." At the same moment the Professor had cast that stunner, Harry had revived Fay. His action was not missed by half the class and those who noticed turned to look at Professor Hart for his reaction; none was forthcoming. He acted as if nothing had happened.

Suddenly, something changed within the students. They started to work in pairs and groups; while one read the book, the others blocked any spells coming their way.

Harry perceived an odd glint in the professor's eyes. It seemed that he wanted something like this to happen. He changed tactics as well. The frequency of the stunners increased drastically and even the one who was reading had to join in the defence. A few toppled but were quickly revived by their counterparts.

The class changed from a usual reading exercise to an all-out battle, one playing offence while the other side played defence.

After about halfway mark, five minutes that is, some of the students started to get exhausted by maintaining a constant shield, which wavered under the regular impacts of stunners.

A few more toppled but most of them were too busy defending themselves to spare a thought for the fallen. Harry stepped up his spell fire and revived them quickly, with help from Ron and Hermione.

Harry had a quick glance at Malfoy who was sitting at ease in his seat, with quick shields to defend himself. He was not bothered about the others. So very like him.

Malfoy's bored expression changed to irritation after a few more minutes and the next spell which came at him miraculously reflected back to the professor after impacting his shield. The Professor blocked it and resumed his barrage. Ron tired of defending, sent a stunner of his own at the Professor. Those who saw him cast it, yelped in surprise. Not because he had attacked a Professor, but due to the powerful wave of energy that flowed from the spell that everyone felt.

The professor shielded it without a sweat but Harry could perceive a hand on the desk to maintain his balance. No more stunners came from the Professor who was looking dangerously at Ron. His red head friend, just realizing what he had done, trembled under the professor's gaze. Everyone's eyes were on both of them, waiting for some sort of explosion. Harry quickly set about reviving the others and was quickly helped by the rest of the conscious crowd.

The Professor just walked back to his seat and waved his wand. A parchment appeared on everyone's desk, the questions on the other side of it. "The ten minutes are over. Put away your books and wands, and answer the questions. You have another ten minutes."

Everyone put their books away and after a pause, reluctantly pocketed their wands.

Harry turned over the parchment to have a look at the questions. He had been too busy defending and reviving everyone that he had hardly managed to read a sentence from a book. He was certain that he would fail.

He was rather dumbfounded by the questions on his parchment; two to be precise.

'_What is your name?'_

_'What have you learned today?'_

Harry looked up and shared the surprised look that everyone was giving each other. That was rather unexpected.

***B***

"All of his classes today, first year included, have been the same." Ron said after swallowing down the kidney pie. The trio was sitting at their house table having dinner.

"From what I have heard, he has also pulled the same firework spell stunt in all his classes." Hermione informed, eying Professor Hart at the head table. There was a lot of chatter going around the great hall and Harry deduced that their conversation was also along similar lines. "Our class was the only one to survive those ten minutes. I think it was all due to Harry. If you hadn't thought about reviving the stunned students, we would have not made it through."

"We were worried for no reason at all." Harry said, ignoring the praise from his friend. "None of the students of the other classes were told to stop attending the DADA classes."

"That is true." Ron agreed. "He said those things just to scare us."

"The question on the parchment was rather interesting." Hermione said.

"Interesting enough for you to ask for an extra parchment." Ron joked. "What did you write anyway?"

"If you were not so thick, you would have understood the numerous things professor Hart was trying to teach us." Hermione said with a huff. Harry knew what she was trying to say.

"I can't believe he awarded me ten points for attacking him." Ron said with a slightly surprised look on his face. He was not able to see the point that Hermione was making. "I thought I had crossed the line that time."

"You _did _cross the line. He even awarded five points Malfoy for that reflective shield." Hermione remarked nodding her head. "That's a really difficult shield to cast."

"Who gives a damn about him!" Ron fumed. "He was just playing solo and defending himself, while his fellow house mates were getting knocked out."

"Forget him Ron." Harry said with a sigh. After a pause he resumed. "I would say that was a rather interesting first lesson."

"Yeah, you are only saying it because you got to be the hero of the class." Ron said with mock jealousy.

Hermione sent a teasing smile at Harry. "I am sure you loved the part when that bashful maiden came to thank you for rescuing her from the depths of unconsciousness." She was referring to the girl Fay Dunbar, who had thanked him, rather shyly, at the end of the class and then ran away. "Our knight in shining armour."

"You are just exaggerating the situation." Harry said with a rather difficult attempt at maintaining a mask of indifference.

"Harry, have you listened to what the other students have been talking about you?" Hermione said. Harry shook his head. He didn't care anyway. "Your heroic actions have spread like wild fire around the school." Ron looked away with a slightly ashamed look. Hermione quickly went on. "Ron, as I have told you earlier, you did what your instincts told you to do. That was rather quick on your part, I must say." She was referring to the incident at the classroom door. "However," she turned to Harry, "you did something I never could have imagined. I mean-"

"It was nothing really. I somehow knew it was just a test." Harry waved off nonchalantly.

"But you were not so sure about it." Hermione stated while Harry looked away. "You took the chance and saved me."

"I just saved you from a harmless firework spell." Harry fought back.

Hermione didn't say anything more. Her green eyed friend was just trying to be modest, in a rather stubborn way that is.

"Professor Carson's class was rather ordinary in comparison." Ron pointed out after a bout of silence. "I mean his transfiguration skills are well matched when compared with the Headmistress, but he was rather boring."

"Yeah" Harry agreed but there was still something very weird about him that he couldn't place. He looked at Hermione who was looking at him with a similar suspicious expression. They finished their meal and were just waiting for Ron to finish his.

"Harry, have you planned when to hold the prefect meeting?" Hermione asked.

"Yes. I talked it over with Susan and we decided to have it on Sunday evening." Harry informed.

"Why so late?" Ron inquired, finishing up his meal.

"Madam Pompfrey told me that they will be bedridden for a few days." Harry told them.

The meeting which was supposed to be held today had been delayed due to the mishap during one of the fifth year classes. It was rather unfortunate for them to be caught in a freak accident in the potions class. Five of the prefects were among the injured and had been admitted in the infirmary on the first day itself.

"When did you speak with her?" Ron asked.

"It was when I went to see how they were doing." Harry stated simply. His friends looked at him with a surprised look. When did he start to do that, they wondered. Hermione's eyes narrowed in suspicion but any further questioning was stalled when Harry got up along with the rest of the students to leave for their common rooms.

***B***

Four men stood in the doorway of a dimly lit bar. They wore black cloaks, standing like sore thumbs among the other customers, even in the darkness. However, they didn't get as much as a second glance from the other people in the bar. They were regulars probably.

They walked over to a free table and sat down in a way as if they owned the place. They looked around for a waiter to attend to them. Only one was in sight and he was busy with the other customers. Where was their regular attendant?

After a short while, a young waiter with brown hair and grey eyes, walked over to their table and greeted them. "Good evening gentlemen." Two of them snorted. They were anything but _gentle_.

"Where were you?" One of them spat. "You should know that we don't like waiting."

"I… I am so sorry. I'll make sure it doesn't happen again." The waiter apologized with a weak voice. "May I have your order?"

"The usual." one of them said, in a rather soft voice.

"The usual? I... I am sorry I don't recollect what your usual order is." The waiter said rather timidly.

"I am really disappointed with your service. There goes your tip kid." The waiter hunger his head in embarrassment. "Four chilled bottles of Whiskey. And get them quick. I am running out of patience here."

The waiter nodded rapidly. "Of course, next time I will make sure I remember that. I will write it down if I have to." Saying which, the waiter hurried away.

"When did we ever tip him?" One of them asked with a chuckle.

Another one said. "Umm… when did we ever _pay_ for the drinks?" All four burst out laughing, uncaring for the noise they were making in the bar. However no one voiced their objections. There was something about those four men that kept everyone at bay.

"You know, we should be careful with the strength of the memory charms we do on that waiter. Next thing we know, he has forgotten his name as well."

"Nah, anything for this muggle whiskey."

"Yeah, especially when it's free."

They again burst out laughing, annoying a few customers. The waiter quickly brought them their drinks; at least that would silence them up. He placed a glass in front of each of them and poured the whiskey into them. Then he added some ice cubes as well. They clinked their glasses and with a 'cheers' and then drank it down in one go. The relieved waiter left them to attend to the other customers.

A moment later, all four were sprawled on the table, snoring like a drove of pigs. The waiter came to their table and looked hesitantly at the sleeping men. The other people in the bar were giving him sympathetic looks as he lifted them one by one and took them outside the bar, puffing and heaving as he dragged them out. He could hear words like 'poor boy', 'hooligans' and 'damn drunks' as he passed them. He pulled all four of them in a secluded alley and fished into their pockets to extract their wands before breaking them. He tied them up and returned to the bar. He made a beeline to the toilet, ignoring calls for orders from the tables. He opened the first door with his wand and saw his twin slumped on the commode. He disillusioned himself and revived his twin before disapparating.

Harry arrived back in his quarters, relieved with the completion of the mission and pleased by the way he handled it; which was without even using his wand. Too bad no one could recognize his achievement.

Earlier, he had been in his quarters when the portkey had vibrated. Within a few seconds he was at the location using the portkey. It was dark but he had easily spotted the four death eaters under the streetlights, cloaked in black and were making no attempts to be discreet. The lane was crowded with muggles and Harry had to again wait for the right moment. However, this moment never arrived since they had entered a crowded pub leaving Harry no option but to trail them into the bar after changing into muggle clothes.

A frontal assault was not an option anymore. He had to be subtle and the time was short. He fingered the potions belt around his waist hidden under his shirt. Then a brilliant idea hit him. He spotted a waiter going in the direction of the toilet and stunned him after following him inside. Harry regretting bringing a muggle into this but it had to be done. He dragged him into a booth and locked the door. Harry conjured a small vial and poured in it some Polyjuice potion and added the waiter's hair to it.

A minute later, the waiter walked out. It was Harry however, while the real one was still in the toilet booth. He had managed to discreetly spike the drinks with a strong sleeping potion which was also in his belt. Rest was rather easy.

The Order would be rather shocked after finding the sleeping death eaters served to them on a silver platter. And _shocked_ they were.

***B***

The seven order members cowered behind a woman, who had an amused smile on her face. It might be rather cowardly on their part but the pink haired woman was their only defence against the crazy eyed devil of a man.

"Now Alastor, the mission was a success, so there is no point in getting worked up." Tonks said with a chuckle.

"Success?" Moody barked causing the men to cringe. Tonks was unperturbed by that outburst; she was well aware of how Moody worked. "Someone had beaten them to the death eaters."

"Is that bad? He could be our ally." Tonks remarked.

"I wouldn't be so sure." the paranoid man shot back. "We don't know what his objective is. If he is on our side, it would be better if he revealed himself to us. Until then, he is our enemy."

"At least we know that he is after the death eaters." Tonks pointed out.

"I don't like his ways. He breaks wands and has no qualms in killing people. A cold blooded murderer who has no regards for the Wizarding laws." Moody barked with angry eyes.

"I didn't know you had much regard for those." Tonks said with a playful smile. Moody just huffed at that.

"What is more troubling is that he has managed to get ahead of us in four separate occasions." Moody said worriedly.

"Four?" Tonks asked with a confused look.

"I am positive that the death eater in disguise during the Diagon Alley situation is one and the same person. His modus operandi is similar. Breaking of wands, unexplained apparition, good duelling skills, it all fits. Also the fact that he ties the death eaters after stunning them and leaves them behind really makes me suspicious. It's as if he knows someone is going to come around and capture them. It could be possible that we might have a traitor in our midst." Moody said thoughtfully.

"It might just be a coincidence. I don't see any pattern in which the vigilante has been working." Tonks said her bit.

"Only for now… only for now…" Moody repeated, lost in his thoughts and suppositions. The seven members taking the silence as a permission to leave quickly disappeared while Moody was not looking.

Moody just smiled wickedly, he had his magical eye after all.

***B***

Harry flowed along with the crowd with Professor Hart in the lead. He looked around and spotted some first and second years. He was sure that third years were also around. It looked like the whole of Hogwarts was invited.

It was Saturday, the much awaited day for each and every student of Hogwarts. The week had been uneventful and the portkey hadn't vibrated at all. His classes went on smoothly. So was his training. The chain apparition training was slow but he was making steady progress.

Ron had been rather jumpy throughout the day while Hermione held a pensive look while her books lay forgotten in front of her. His friends were walking at his side as usual. They were always at his side no matter what the situation. They shared a bond which seemed to gain strength as time passed by. Harry felt really lucky. It had been more than six years and they were still glued to him. Harry didn't realize it himself but he couldn't bear to be alone; he feared loneliness, especially now.

His train of thoughts were interrupted by a commotion in the front and the flowing crowd of students bumped into each other. Harry and the two prefects made their way to the front. That included lots of pushing and shoving.

"Head Boy coming through." Harry called out when physical force was not enough anymore. Finally they made it to the front but the view left them astounded. Magic could really do impossible things.

"What in the Merlin's name..." Ron's exclamation was buried by the gasps around them. They had found themselves standing in the entrance of an enormous dome shape enclosure, lined with a cascading stadium style seating arrangement in a shape of a 'C'. The arrangement was divided into five sections, four of those having the crests of each of the house painted over them. In the centre there was a huge circular arena which was slightly above ground. There was a fair distance between the arena and the seating arrangement. In the centre of the arena there were a few luxurious chairs and a pedestal which faced away from where they stood.

Everyone stood in the huge double door entrance with awestruck expressions, frozen to their spots. Harry and Hermione were the first to come out of their trance and after some yelled out instructions, the crowd regained their mobility and quickly took up their respective house seats nearest to them so that they could feast their eyes upon the spectacle in front of them. Harry along with Susan and the rest of the prefects guided the unending stream of students in an orderly fashion to their seats.

Harry looked around to examine the arena more closely. Besides the usual seating arrangement, there were two separate groups of seats at opposite ends of the arena which were slightly closer to the arena. Intriguing possibilities occurred to Harry. Professor Hart just looked on with indifference, standing at one side.

After most of the seats were occupied, Professor Hart entered the arena and stood in the centre. "Welcome to the inauguration of the Battle Club." He began. "I am pleased..." He didn't look pleased in any manner. "…to announce that the Minister, along with his associates have taken some time off their busy schedule to attend the opening ceremony."

There were some loud whispers at this announcement. Some even cheered, possibly due to the upcoming arrival of the Minister.

"A ceremony? The Minister is also coming? What exactly are they planning?" Hermione asked rhetorically with a thoughtful expression. "I had been thinking it would be somewhat similar to the Duelling Club. Now I am not so sure."

Harry just nodded. He had this feeling in the back of his mind that this club was more than what met the eye. He had not been left disappointed up till now.

The doors opened and the Minister walked in pompously, followed by the Headmistress, Percy, Amelia Bones, Kingsley and two more in black and blue robes which Harry didn't recognize. They were being trailed by a group of Aurors, wands in hands and looked around furtively as if expecting an attack at any moment.

"Those two are from the Wizengamot." Ron said with a shocked look on his face. Harry deduced that the Wizengamot didn't attend such ordinary events. So if that was true then his assumption was right on the mark. The Battle Club had to be something extraordinary.

After all the guests were seated, Professor Hart took his place behind the pedestal. "On Hogwarts behalf, I would like to thank our reputed guests who have graced us with their presence on such an important event for Hogwarts." He gestured respectfully at the Minister and his compatriots. There was a huge round of thundering applause from the students. It seemed it didn't take much on the part of the Ministry to turn from a villain to a hero in a blink of an eye. The students were rather taken in by this Battle Club. "Allow me to throw some light on what this club is all about."

Suddenly all chatter vanished replaced by a pin drop silence. An air of anticipation and apprehension hovered over each student, Harry included. Was this Dumbledore's planning? It didn't seem likely with all the ministry involvement.

"As I had informed you all earlier, the main aim for this Club is to foster the skills to defend and fight among our younger generation. This club will put all the four Hogwarts houses against each other and with positive competition we would be able to spot some talented students. Each house will have to nominate ten of their strongest members who will then spar against the other houses for the War trophy. There will also be individual competition as well. Outside public including relatives and press can also attend the event, after buying tickets that is." The Professor turned to the Minister nodded his assent. "We were going to replace Quidditch with the Battle Club-" He was interrupted by loud protests, Ron trying to best everyone at it. "However, due to the popularity of the sport, we have decided against it." Loud sighs were released by the relieved crowd. There was a very familiar glint in the Professor eyes. He was quite far from where Harry sat so he could have imagined it.

"I couldn't have survived another year without Quidditch." Ron let out with an eased look, while Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Remember that your performance here could attract a lot of job opportunities in various fields within the ministry, what with the recruiters who would also be in attendance." Hermione sat a bit straighter and this time Ron rolled his eyes. Harry could do nothing but chuckle at the antics of his friends. "Minister Scrimgeour would like to say a few words."

Harry groaned but his reaction was not shared by many. So it was true. The Minister had indeed become a hero. This meant that he didn't need Harry anymore. There was at least one thing less for Harry to worry about now. The Minister went on for fifteen minutes droning on how great the ministry was, how great he was. Those who had been trying to be attentive earlier were looking around with bored expressions. When the speech ended, very few applauded, rest of them were not even aware that the Minister's monologue had ended. However, the Minister waved and had a look on his face as if he had just been awarded an Order of Merlin. The headmistress stood up and said a couple of words along the lines of healthy competition and positive education.

Later, Professor Hart again took the pedestal and announced. "Since all the speeches are out of the way, let's begin the demonstration." The huge doors opened and a group of ten Aurors walked in to the centre. They were followed by a group of healers who went unnoticed by all of the students and went over to stand in a corner. "These skilful Aurors of the advanced guard will display their advanced duelling techniques when they will go against each other. Let me reassure you all that no one would be harmed by a stray spell since the arena is surrounded by a magically impervious shield. It would have to take an Unforgivable curse to break through the shields." There were a lot of intakes of breath. Harry was not sure whether the professor was trying to reassure the students or scare them.

Harry couldn't recognize any of them, nor could any of his friends. Well, they didn't know many in the first place. The esteemed guests moved over to the public seating along with Professor Hart.

The Aurors split up, five on each side. And then they began. Everyone was left dumbstruck at the fight that ensued. Even Harry's jaw was left hanging. Exceptional reflexes and raw power were displayed by the advanced guard. They moved with grace and unmatched speed and their spell fire were too fast to follow. Seeing them fight made him feel excited to the bone. Ron was practically shaking next to him, pointing a finger at the remarkable display of duelling talent but unable to voice his admiration. The spells which had been dodged or avoided, impacted the arena shield with a ringing sound but could not penetrate past it.

Harry knew he was no match against them. Their battle hardened eyes and resistant bodies made Harry feel slightly inferior to them. He mentally laughed at himself. In truth, he was nowhere near their level. Not now anyway. And to do the thing he was supposed to do, he would have to grow much stronger than any of those Aurors. _That_ was a rather daunting task.

A thunderous applause acknowledged the battle after it was over where only two were left standing. They revived the others and moved off the arena to a corner where a couple medics along with Madam Pompfrey were waiting for them. Harry also spotted Cho among the medics. This certainly did surprise him. However, his thoughts were interrupted when Professor Hart walked to the centre again.

"That was quite an amazing exhibition. Hogwarts is eternally thankful for the rather enlightening display of skills." He clapped, nodding towards the Aurors. "Now, to show them the skills of our students, I suggest a duel between the four houses." The students broke into an excited chatter. "I would request a student from each house to come forward to the centre of the arena."

In the Gryffindor seating area, every head turned towards Harry. This was his moment to shine. To prove his mettle and to lay the foundation of the mission he had been assigned to. His friends gave him encouraging looks but one of them was just a false mask. Harry could discern a slight disappointment within those eyes. Was his friendship more important than his mission?

Harry nodded at his friend and smiled encouragingly at him. Ron's face broke into a wide grin and nodded back. He mouthed a 'thank you' and stood up to walk down to the arena. There were a few confused students and some even went as far as voicing their disapproval but none stood up to challenge his progress to the arena.

Harry found Malfoy already standing in the arena. That was expected. Anthony Goldstein represented Ravenclaw while Ernie Macmillan represented Hufflepuff. The crowd murmured in anticipation while Hermione looked on with worry.

"Why did you let him take your place?" Hermione asked Harry.

"It was never my place to begin with." Harry said indifferently. "And I think Ron has a better chance of winning than me."

"I know why you did it." Hermione said with sharp eyes. Harry didn't say anything. Harry knew Ron wanted to be acknowledged by the whole of Hogwarts. However, he didn't have a way to showcase his skills. This was a very good opportunity for him. He was doing it for his friend.

"Since we have got a student from each house, let's begin." Professor Hart spoke up. "Remember, there would be no lethal spells. First fight would be between Slytherin and Hufflepuff."

It was over within a blink of an eye. Ernie quickly went down under the barrage of curses and hexes sent by Malfoy. The Slytherin crowd burst into cheers and applauses while the Hufflepuffs looked dejected. Malfoy just had a disgusted look on his face and walked of the arena while Ernie was revived by the professor and helped him off.

"Now we will have Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw."

This was even quicker. Ron's stunner pierced Anthony's shield, leaving him unconscious. Ron just waved at the delirious Gryffindor crowd. Ron revived Anthony and assisted the shaken Ravenclaw to his house seating. This drew a respectable applause from the Ravenclaw students.

"Finally, we are going to have a match between Slytherin and Gryffindor."

Malfoy walked into the arena while Ron waited for him, wand ready at his hand. Malfoy's eyes never left his opponent; his face was a blank mask. A cloud of silence ascended on the spectators, their minds trying to guess the outcome of the duel.

Harry was slightly surprised by Malfoy's attitude. There were no insulting comments, no abusive remarks; just plain concentration. He hoped Ron didn't underestimate him, even with his powerful wand.

At Professor Hart's signal, the duel commenced. Everyone was enraptured by the skill level the two students were exhibiting. Harry was rather shocked at Malfoy's skill as well. It seemed he had been trained by someone as well. It looked as if everyone was undergoing training of some sort.

Ron didn't waste any time and was quickly on the offensive sending a mixture of stunners and cutting hexes. Malfoy realizing the power behind those spells, decided to dodge them. The spells hit the shield of the arena with a resounding gong which was much louder as compared to when the Aurors were fighting. Malfoy was left shaken even after avoiding the onslaught, the power behind spells affecting his concentration. However, he persevered on and kept looking for an opening.

Ron was not giving any opportunity for Malfoy to fight back and pushed on with his attacks. Malfoy changed tactics and started using the reflective shield and was successful in sending most of the spells back at Ron. However, Malfoy was completely drained out by maintaining that shield and trying to induce his shield with enough power to reflect the powerful spells back at Ron.

Ron brought up his own shield which easily absorbed his own spells coming at him. This gave a now or never opportunity to Malfoy. He broke into a sprint in the direction of Ron and sent a silent Leg-locking curse at Ron's feet.

Ron was taken by surprise and the curse just missed his shield and met its target with great accuracy. What was more commendable was the fact that it was cast while running.

Ron tripped and fell on his side and Malfoy promptly sent a stunner at him. Ron just before hitting the floor had sent a stunner back at Malfoy. They were so close that they couldn't have brought up a shield in time. They both knocked each other unconscious.

It was a draw. For a moment, nothing happened. The crowd was amazed at the result of the match. Then as if something clicked in their mind, all the students broke into loud cheers of approval, Harry and Hermione among them.

Professor Hart walked to the arena and revived both the students. "That was exceptional. Don't you all agree?" The crowd shouted their acknowledgement. "The Battle Club as of now has been initiated!" The professor said loudly and all the students stood on their feet and clapped till their hands hurt.

***B***

Harry came out of the office of his quarters and was rather taken aback to find Cho standing outside. He had just returned from the Battle Club opening and had refreshed himself. He was on his way to the Gryffindor common room.

What was she doing here? Harry didn't get a chance to meet her earlier today after the ceremony was over. She was lost in the crowd so he decided to meet up later.

"Hi Harry" she said with a sweet smile; too sweet for Harry's liking.

"Hey" Harry responded with a smile of his own. "So you have got a job as a healer?"

"Yes." She nodded her head. "I am serving an apprenticeship as a healer for St Mungo's."

"I didn't know you wanted to be a healer." Harry said with a doubtful expression. "You were rather good at duelling. I thought you be trying to be an Auror."

"I changed my mind." Was the blunt reply he received. There was something strange about that response. It felt as if she was hurrying on with their conversation. "I actually wanted to speak with you about something. I was just going to knock." Cho said with a blank face. Why was he getting a feeling that she was lying.

"About what?" Harry asked uneasily under Cho's gaze. She had a strange look in her eyes that Harry couldn't understand. Why was she making him feel so uneasy? Was she trying to rebuild their failed relationship?

Cho looked around as if trying to see someone. "Let's go to a more private place. What about the Astronomy tower?" The way she suggested the place to Harry, it felt it was premeditated on her part.

"Alright" Harry agreed after a pause. Something was wrong about her. She didn't look herself. Her eyes were too cold, her face too rigid. As if she was under an Imperius curse or as if... it hit him. Everything that he saw and felt started to fall in place.

They both walked side by side, with Cho, or whoever it was, on his left. They walked in silence and Harry noticed that Cho was trying to walk slower than him. Harry was on his guard, his hidden right arm holding his wand. In an instant, there was a flurry of silent movement that Harry could perceive from the corner of his eyes. The footsteps next to him stopped and without wasting a moment, Harry crouched and twisted in the spot to level the wand against his opponent; an opponent who was no longer visible.

* * *

A/N: Don't forget to read the sneak peak added in the first chapter.


	18. United by Hatred

A/N: Yeah! 10000 Hits! Anyway, reviews would be appreciated.

* * *

United by Hatred

* * *

The enemy had disillusioned himself.

Expecting a killing curse any moment, Harry jumped out of the way.

His premeditated dodge saved his life as a bolt of green light went through the space where he was present a moment ago. He was very close to where the spell had emitted from. He sprang from his position in a flash and landed a solid wheel kick at the invisible target. The kick made an impact and Harry heard a crunching sound followed by the wand dropping to the floor. Harry's ankle throbbed but he shut the pain out of his mind. Concentration had to be maintained if he had to survive.

Cho reappeared, a pained expression on her face, one hand hanging limply at her side while the other one was making a hasty attempt to grab the wand. Harry kicked the wand away and punched the impersonator in the stomach. Cho doubled over in pain but Harry pushed her to the wall, pinning her shoulders.

"Who are you?!" Harry demanded, breathing heavily. He had resorted to physical violence and he didn't know why. What if she was really Cho and was under the Imperius Curse? He couldn't bear to imagine the injuries he had caused her. However, if she was not Cho but someone under Polyjuice potion, then the real Cho might be in even greater danger.

Even under such pain, a dry chuckle left Cho. "You really know your way around with the ladies."

"Shut up and answer me!" Harry shook Cho roughly, who winced at the pressure Harry was exerting. Harry was much stronger than he looked.

"My my… such anger. How could you hurt an innocent girl in such a manner?" Cho sneered which was a rather disturbing sight.

Harry had enough. He moved away from her and petrified her. And then he did the first thing that came to his mind. "Legilimens!"

It was his first attempt; a failed attempt at that. It was too late for Harry to realize that nothing could be gained from it.

He felt a part of himself leaving his body and settle in Cho's mind. It was very a disconcerting feeling. His conscious was split into two parts but neither was in his control. He vaguely felt is body fall over and hit the floor rather painfully but the pain he felt was rather dull.

Harry couldn't concentrate on any memories which whizzed past him. It was as if he was sitting in a Knight Bus, speeding along the traffic. Harry tried his best to slow down the memories but didn't know how to do so.

He berated himself for such a foolish decision. He had to get out, but how could he do that?

He tried to feel his own body and luckily found his conscious to slip out of the death eater's mind. After a lot of effort he was back in his body. However, as soon as he regained complete consciousness in his own body, he felt a sharp pain in his nose and his head throbbed making him feel dizzy. There was a movement Harry noticed from the corner of his eyes and he quickly raised his wand to send a stunner in the general direction of the running death eater. It seemed that the petrification charm Harry had held over Cho had run out.

Luckily, the stunner met its mark and the death eater went down in a heap. A series of footsteps came from the opposite side of the corridor. The Aurors spotted him first and came up to him.

Harry was shocked when they held their wands in his face. "What are you doing? I am a student and that one stunned over there is a death eater." Harry said with a tired voice. Legilimency was not his cup of tea.

Two of them still maintained their wands at Harry, while the other two went to check over the stunned death eater.

"This one was under the Polyjuice potion. It seems to be wearing off." One of them said.

Harry sighed, realizing that she was not Cho after all. But then another dreadful thought hit him. Where was Cho then?

"I am Harry Potter." Harry spoke up with intensity. "That death eater over there was impersonating a girl named Cho Chang, an ex-student of Hogwarts. She might be in danger. Please do something!"

Before the two Aurors facing him could respond, one of the other Auror called out from where the death eater had fallen. "This one had cast the Unforgivable curse to trigger the alarm." They must have done a Priori Incantatem charm.

The Aurors lowered their wands. "I am sorry about this Mr Potter, but we had to take precautions." Harry nodded. "We will have to report back to Head Auror White. You will be approached if we need more information, Mr Potter." Harry nodded again, too tired to say anything.

***B***

He looked at the fallen Hufflepuff in disgust. Hufflepuff students were nothing but a disgrace in the world of wizardry. They were beneath him. He walked off the arena with an air of arrogance, ignoring the cheers from the students of his house.

The Gryffindor and Ravenclaw match was a bit of a shocker for him. The Ravenclaw went down without firing a single spell. Weasel might have been lucky there. However, his luck will not work against him.

_Don't underestimate the opponent no matter how weak he looks. _He walked onto the arena with his eyes on his opponent. He decided to be on his guard.

_Talk with the wand and not with your mouth, Draco. _He smirked at Weasel, looking at him down his nose. He had quite a few choice words for the red head but he swallowed them down. The crowd had gone silent, their every move being watched like hawks. He liked it that way.

Weasel's face was screwed in concentration, giving him a rather funny look. He would have laughed if the signal from the professor hadn't come.

Then everything went downhill for him. The Weasel was onto him like a hippogriff jumping on its prey. He attacked with such ferocity that left him gasping for breath. Luckily, he had decided to dodge a few spells rather than defend. He knew about the wand that the Weasel had obtained. It was powerful, if the performance in the first class of DADA was anything to go by. He wondered how many boots the Weasel had to lick to get such a wand. However, now was not the time to muse about his opponent's acquisition.

He was dodging and jumping with great speed but was only managing to avoid those stunners and cutting hexes by the skin of his teeth. The Weasel shouted the curses as if he was trying to win Who-is-the-loudest competition. The ominous thundering sound behind him as the spell struck the shield really made him anxious. The attacks were relentless giving him no opportunity at all. Moreover, even the power from the spells he successfully dodged was unsettling and was affecting his rhythm and focus. He felt goose bumps as the spells whizzed past him and the air crackled around him with pure invisible energy. He was in big trouble.

He had to win! He could not lose to that blood traitor. How would he be able to show his face if he lost?

He had to find a weak spot, an opening at least. However, none was forthcoming. He had to do something. He decided to take a chance. He knew if the power behind his next move was not enough, he would lose.

It was a gamble. And it paid off. He brought up his reflective shield trying to empower it with as much magical energy that he could induce in it. As the spells struck his shield, he leaned into it to maintain his balance against the force which was pushing him back. The rebounded spells were easily absorbed by Weasel's shield.

_Make the most of any opportunity that comes your way. _The barrage stopped, giving him a few seconds to launch his own attack.

_If you want to win against a stronger opponent, surprise him. _He ran full steam towards the red head, who was slow to react at this unexpected manoeuvre.

He brought up his wand with practiced accuracy and sent a silent leg-locking curse at the Weasel's feet. The Weasel brought up the shield in time but it was only to protect his body.

With morbid satisfaction, he saw the curse hit its mark and the Weasel toppled over, losing the shield in the process. He was going to win!

He sent a stunner at the place where the Weasel was going to fall, still running towards him to ensure a direct hit. However, the Weasel sent a wild stunner at him before hitting the ground.

He was too close to react to that unforeseen attack. He watched in shock as the spell raced towards him and hit him straight in the chest. Everything went black, a deep black.

He regained consciousness after he was revived by the professor but he was feeling rather dizzy and very weak. His knees wobbled when he tried to stand up but he fought to maintain his bold posture. He walked off the arena and silently thanked the professor for supporting him. Outwardly, he looked angrily at the professor and voiced his rage at being coddled with. However, as soon he let him go, he lost his balance along with the weak hold he had on his consciousness.

_'Such a weakling.' The students standing around him said while laughing at his face. _

_He looked to his left to find his disappointed parents standing with their heads bowed down. 'You couldn't even defeat a Weasley… How would you be able to… Our death is imminent…'_

_'All the training was for naught. You disgrace me.' His instructor admonished, turning his back on him._

_Potter stood in front of him, with scornful eyes peering at him and a sarcastic smile playing on his lips. 'Pitiful.'_

He shot up from his bed but the sudden movement made him feel queasy and gave him a terrible headache.

"Ah! Mr Malfoy. Finally awake, are you?" A voice called out from somewhere towards his right.

He was in the infirmary and Madam Pompfrey was walking towards him. He looked to his left to find two dumb faces with a look which somewhat resembled worry; Crabbe and Goyle, his bodyguards.

"You okay?" Crabbe asked. Draco didn't respond. Madam Pompfrey did a thorough check up of him, without any interruption from Draco. He was too tired to stop her but he wouldn't have stopped her anyway. He had learned from the last six years that the more he tried to resist against the nurse, the more she fought back. So it was better to quickly get it over with.

"I am not feeling too good. My head hurts and my body is aching." He said quietly to the nurse. He wouldn't have said that in front of anyone else besides his bodyguards. He disliked showing any signs of weakness. "Does it have anything to do with what I ate? The food at Hogwarts is really terri-"

"Nothing of that sort." Madam Pompfrey interrupted him. "You are just under the after effects of a particularly strong Stupefying Charm. I thought that four hours of sleep should have done the trick."

"I have been out for four hours?" Draco exclaimed in disbelief. His bodyguards nodded at him. How could a stunner be so powerful? He would have to be very careful of the Weasel's wand in the future. "I am leaving."

No one stopped him. That was because he fell back on the bed, his legs too weak to support his weight.

The infirmary echoed with a few swear words which were followed by a loud nurse berating a patient.

***B***

Harry sat in an armchair in the office within his quarters staring at the flames raging in the fireplace. The flames reflected the state of his mind.

He was not alone though. Ron and Hermione were there; even Ginny. Harry had earlier let them in after the incessant knocking on the door. He had wanted to be alone but in reality, he preferred the company. Since they were prefects, they could have let themselves in, but they respected his privacy. He had opened the door for them and they filed in. No one spoke but the silence was not uncomfortable.

"I am sorry." Harry began. He raised his hand when Hermione tried to interrupt. "I was going back to my same old self, trying to enclose myself in a shell of misery. It's a good thing you guys came along."

"It's alright Harry." Hermione said with a soothing smile. "We are always here for you. Through thick and thin. Come hell or high water-"

"Okay! I get the idea." Harry laughed out, in spite of himself and the others joined him.

"You have a really unique sense of humour." Ron said to Hermione with an appreciative smile. She blushed slightly while Harry and Ginny just chuckled.

"Quit flirting around me." Ginny said with mock disgust. Ron just showed her his tongue. Harry laughed at the siblings. His laughter slowly died down but he didn't return to his morose mood.

"Thank you for coming here. I feel fine already." Harry gave them a genuine smile.

Hermione nodded. "Even we are worried about Cho. I hope she is okay."

"So do I." Harry echoed. Harry turned to Ron. "I didn't get a chance to congratulate you on that wonderful duel between you and Malfoy."

Ron turned red in embarrassment. "Well, it was just a draw. Malfoy was rather quick on his feet."

"You were great." Hermione praised Ron. His embarrassment changed into pride which turned to astonishment when she said. "But Malfoy was better." Ron looked as if his eyes were going to pop out. Hermione broke into furious giggles and was joined in by Ginny. Harry just smiled at Ron.

"That was a rather disturbing image; _you_ _praising_ _Malfoy._" The name was spat with disgust by Ron.

"Jealous, are we?" Hermione went on. Harry was surprised by how far she was going in teasing Ron. Was it for his own sake, to make him laugh? Or was her intention to tease him entirely different?

"I have no reason to be." Ron said with a mysterious smile which left Hermione frowning in concentration at Ron.

After a moment, Hermione's face broke into a relieved smile. She turned to Harry. "Let's go and get some dinner. I am feeling hungry."

"Hey! That's my line." Ron said indignantly. Rest of them broke into a happy laughter.

***B***

Even the next day there was no news about the whereabouts of Cho. Harry had gone to meet up with the Headmistress and luckily Auror White was also in the office.

"I am sorry Mr Potter but we are doing our best. I am certain we are bound to unearth something that would give us a clue to her location." Auror White said calmly.

"Could she… could she still be alive?" Harry asked in a soft voice. He was worried about her; after all she had been his friend and a member of DA.

"I am positive about that." Auror White nodded. "After a bit of investigation we carried out earlier, we found that one of the Ministry employee who used to deal with hiring and recruitment for St Mungo's, had recently a filed a recommendation for Miss Chang. Now, he is on the run. The point of the matter is that the nomination and the reports suggest that the impersonator was planning to stay in Hogwarts for at least two months. And as we know, Polyjuice potion has to be drunk within twenty four hours after mixing it with the required body part, it would not be wrong on our part to deduce that Miss Chang has been held somewhere, at least for the period of two months. We have also taken measures to hide any news about the death eater capture within Hogwarts. So we still have some time to act."

Harry nodded appreciatively. Auror White knew what was needed to be done.

Previously, Harry had an impression that Aurors were rather weak and unwise, but now he knew his assumption was somewhat wrong. What with the skills displayed by the Advanced Guard and the intellect shown by Auror White. Moody, Kingsley and Tonks were also a few examples of excellent Aurors that he knew of.

"Has the death eater in your capture spoken yet?" Harry asked, just remembering about that death eater.

"Everyone speaks under Veritaserum." Mr White stated with a smile which disappeared as he went on "However that has not been much help. The death eaters have taken necessary precautions in avoiding any leak of information in an event of a capture. We learned that the Polyjuice potion was provided to him by a death eater, in a location he was not aware of. Also his instructions were very limited and he had been told to report to a secret location if the task is completed. We have laid a trap on that location and we are just waiting for the mouse to take the bait."

"Let's hope it works out." Harry desired.

"You don't need to worry about Miss Chang. We will save her." Auror White said confidently in a strong voice. Harry had no choice but to trust him.

***B***

Prefect meeting; a very trivial matter but Harry knew that he had to do it right. He realized that if he had to unite Hogwarts, he would have to start from the top and what better place to start than the prefects.

However, his task was made difficult with all the hatred which had been directed towards him. Also being late to their first meeting would not help his cause.

He was running late. He was sprinting from the Headmistress' office to his quarters since apparating within the halls would have been noticed by the watchful paintings. The meeting with the Headmistress and Auror White had stretched a bit longer than he had expected. There was still no news on Cho. He shook his head as if trying to rid his mind of worry. He needed to concentrate on how he was going to handle the meeting. This would be their first face to face confrontation. Harry hoped that they at least acted civilly towards him. He didn't know what he would do if they started to badmouth him.

Before he knew it, he was at the door to his office. He righted his badge, adjusted his uniform robes and with a deep breath, he entered.

He didn't look late. Everyone had arrived and were just taking their seat. Harry walked over to the table but there was no chair for him to sit on. Most of them looked at him with cruel satisfaction. Harry remembered seeing only twenty four chairs; he was the twenty fifth.

"The message seems rather clear to me. You don't belong here." Ernie said bitterly. Harry looked at everyone and most of them shared his feelings. Ron and Hermione looked at him pleadingly, as if trying to convince him not to explode. He looked at Susan who was trying not to meet his eyes. Harry knew why. She had been proved wrong. More than half of the prefects were in the DA and besides his close friends, none had sympathy in their eyes. Ginny however was just smiling at him. The very thing he needed.

He smiled at the scorning faces and said pleasantly. "Let's change that, shall we?" He conjured a chair next to Susan who scooted over to make room. He sat down and looked at the other prefects' reaction. They didn't even look at him. At Harry's astonishment, even Colin was ignoring him.

He mentally laughed at himself. He always wished to be unseen and go unnoticed but now when he wants their attention, none was forthcoming. He didn't mind; for now.

"Let's begin the meeting." Harry started smoothly. "Our patrolling arrangement for the last week has been only temporary and we need to plan out the distribution of duties. Does anyone have any suggestions?" Everyone was silent bar one.

"We could follow the same patrolling schedule as last year?" Hermione said her bit, trying to make the meeting interactive. It only served to be an echo in the silent room.

"We would appreciate it if you all could tell us what's on your mind." Susan tried but everyone took it the wrong way.

"Oh! We have a lot on our mind." Pansy said spitefully, looking at Harry. "However, we just don't think _you_ can handle it."

Surprisingly, everyone agreed with the Slytherin, nodding their heads. Well well; it was not that difficult was it; uniting the prefects that is.

"Try me." Harry challenged.

"For starters," Zacharias exploded, as if he had been holding back up till now. "You don't deserve to be a Head Boy." And that seemed to release the flood of complaints.

"We worked our asses off for two years, proving our mettle, so that we could become Head Boy. But those two years were just a cruel joke. We were never in the consideration to begin with. You were always going to be the Head Boy." Harper spat, the sixth year Slytherin prefect.

Harry stayed silent. He knew it was true and he was truly sorry about it. But what could he say.

"You have taken advantage of your name, your fame and your wealth." Everyone nodded in assent. At least there was a common agreement about that. It seemed that their hatred towards him had united their thoughts. Harry stayed silent, trying to come up with a good response.

Hermione beat him to it. "How could you say such a thing? Don't you know him?"

"We know him now and his twisted ways."

"Keep your trash to yourself." Ron fumed. "He has suffered more than anyone else. Don't make it more difficult for him."

"Suffered you say? I think he has rather enjoyed himself." Everyone was looking daggers at Harry. He was angry but didn't show it; he wouldn't give them the satisfaction. He raised his hand to stop his friends from defending him.

"I know you all despise me." Harry said with a sardonic smile. "However, I don't give a _knut_ for what you feel." He said without emotion. His friends gasped at that snide response. The others were too shocked to react. "I am the Head Boy now and nothing can change that, no matter what you do. If you have a problem with me, take it to the Headmistress. However, don't you dare let any of your feelings come between your responsibilities and duties."

"Or what? Is that a threat?" Ernie seethed, standing up.

"Take it as you please." Harry stated evenly.

"Umm... Harry..." Harry's sharp gaze stopped Hermione's request.

"You can't force your authority on us." Colin joined in with his sharp refusal.

Harry had a good mind to say 'Watch me' but he stayed silent. That would go too far.

Harry looked at Malfoy who had a rather pleased expression on his face, rather enjoying the meeting. He had been quiet all along, his work being carried out by the other students. What more could he ask. Harry sent an evil grin towards him, wiping the smile of Malfoy's face.

"Since all the pleasantries are out of the way, let us get on with the meeting, shall we?"

It was a very unpleasant meeting to say the least.

***B***

"That was a horrible." Hermione concluded, for the sixth time. She looked accusingly at Harry. He had made it worse by openly challenging them and refusing to defend himself.

They were sitting near the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room. Ginny had also been sitting with them but had just left with Dean, who had sent a scathing look at Harry before leaving. The people in the common room kept shooting sharp looks towards Harry, while talking amongst each other. They were most probably discussing him. His thoughts went back to his dad, who had also become a Head Boy in a similar fashion. Had he also faced the same hardships that he was enduring?

"They all are absolutely mental. Totally mental." Ron repeated himself. "How could they believe the trash that the Daily Prophet wrote about you?" He said furiously.

"Actually, it had only added salt to their wounds. The damage had already been done by making me a Head Boy." Harry stated with a thoughtful look.

Hermione looked at him curiously. "What do you mean by that?"

"You heard what they said during the meeting? Most of it was true." He raised his hand to stop Hermione from interrupting him. "Yes it was. The only thing I can say in my defence was that I had nothing to do with my selection. I don't know what Dumbledore was thinking..."

Hermione caught on at his slip up. "Why do you think Dumbledore had anything to do with that?" She asked suspiciously. It didn't take much to make her feel that way.

Harry mentally kicked himself. With unreadable eyes, he said. "The Headmistress told me. This was when I had asked her to rethink her decision about my selection." He lied easily. That disturbed him slightly but he maintained his blank look. Hermione's mouth rounded in a silent 'Oh'.

"Anyway, what's happened to Colin?" Ron had a slightly surprised look on his face. "He had always been a big fan of you. What caused the sudden change?"

"If you haven't forgotten, he had recently lost his only brother." Hermione told Ron, whose confused face remained unchanged.

"I know about that." Ron said slightly affronted by the rebuttal. "What I am trying to say is that after a loss of a family member, shouldn't he be out for revenge? Siding with Harry would be the best way to go about it."

After a pause, during which the trio tried to come up with a reasonable explanation about Colin's actions, Harry spoke up. "I will not blame Colin for the animosity and hatred he has towards me. You know, a loss of someone you love does things to people. You either take the blame, or put it on others. It seems Colin has found the latter more agreeable. I believe that his feelings for me have nothing to do with me being a Head Boy. I might not be wrong to assume that he blames me for not protecting his brother. After all I was a hero in their eyes and I had failed to do my job." Ron was left speechless by the depth of Harry's statement.

Hermione shared a similar look but there was worry in her eyes. "You don't agree with that thinking right?"

Harry smiled at her reassuringly. "My heart wants to but my mind defends me by telling me that I am only a normal human being. Even if I wanted to, I can't protect everyone."

"Your mind talks with you?" Ron said with disbelief.

Harry chuckled while Hermione rolled her eyes. "It was just a-" Hermione tried to inform him but Ron interrupted. "I know. I was just trying to release the sombre mood. I am not as thick as you think."

"So you agree that you are thick?" Hermione teased with amusement.

"Well, I am not perfect. However," Ron pulled out his Amber wand. "My imperfections get overshadowed by my strengths."

"Not again!" Hermione complained loudly, drawing a few glances from the students in the common room. Harry and Ron burst out laughing and Hermione soon joined in.

Their happiness was short lived though. As they entered the Great hall for the dinner, the trio stopped at the entrance. The eyes of each student were on them; on Harry to be exact.

Slytherin students were looking at him with arrogant disapproval; Ravenclaws were throwing calculating looks at him while the Hufflepuff table had unconcealed feelings of hatred emanating from it. Gryffindors were just glaring at him with angry eyes.

"Why are you smiling?" Hermione whispered to Harry, who had an involuntary smile on his face, which looked more like a smirk.

Harry quickly concealed it but didn't answer Hermione's question. Why was he smiling? It looked as if everyone shared the feeling of loathe towards him, irrespective of their house. It seemed that the happenings of the meeting had been cascaded down from the prefects to the other students, increasing the intensity of the feelings towards him. He realized how Umbridge would have felt. Now that was a funny way of thinking; which had caused him to smile.

Luna stood up and waved at him, while Harry waved back with a wide grin. Luna was just… Luna. She may look slightly crazy but she was not. The only thing that gave her that image was her thinking, which was very different from a normal person and hence most of them were unable to comprehend it. She did have outrageous fantasies and imagination, but Harry overlooked it. Irrespective of being from a different house, she still stood by his side. Harry was grateful for the friendship they shared.

Ginny and Neville signalled from the Gryffindor table and the trio went in their direction. Harry met everyone's eyes with a mask of indifference. He was not going to get bogged down by it and was trying to send this message across with his lack of reaction.

Harry and his friends took the seats saved for them. Harry nodded at Ginny with a smile who was sitting next to him. She replied in kind. "Not sitting with Dean?" Harry asked her quietly. She looked away not meeting his eyes.

"He had some things to discuss with his friends." Ginny replied vaguely but Harry didn't probe. He figured what must have happened if the look Dean was sending him was anything to go by. He wanted to apologize but didn't know how to phrase it. He just left it at that and concentrated on his meal.

***B***

Both his arms were strapped to the walking sticks, but there was an ever present smile on his face. Harry tried not to notice the new addition and smiled back.

"How was the meeting?" Harry had already told Lance about the meeting and his reservations about it.

"Bad." Was the one worded reply from Harry referring to yesterday's disaster.

Lance just chuckled with a twinkle in his eyes. He didn't prod or ask for explanations. "Let's get down to business. Your healing abilities still need some brushing up but your chain apparition seems to be going fine." After slowly leading Harry to the hidden gym he continued. "Today you are going to learn a very unique technique which could turn the tables in a battle." Harry waited with interested eyes. He had an impression that they had covered almost everything.

He waited. He waited for a few more minutes, irritation creeping in. With a blank face, Harry said with an encouraging voice. "You were saying something about turning the tables?"

Lance smiled at Harry with a hint of pride in his eyes. "That's right. Distant Magic."

"What's that?" Harry inquired with confusion.

"It is the ability to perform magic at a distance from where one stands." Realization dawned on Harry and numerous possibilities and strategies hit Harry, bringing an excited smile on his face. Lance chuckled.

"You mean I could conjure a shield away from my body and something like that?"

Lance nodded. "This technique is very common knowledge among those who study magic but it has been overlooked due to the amount of magic it consumes leaving behind a drained body. However, if used judiciously one can gain a distinct advantage over their opponent. Also..." Lance went on with his lecture while Harry drank in every word said as if he had been dying of thirst. This would have even made a Hogwarts professor jealous of all the attention Lance was getting. Except Snape that is.

***B***

"I have gone through the answers you all had left on your parchments." Professor Hart said, standing behind his desk, facing the class while everyone looked on warily, including Harry. They only had one DADA class last week, the second one was cancelled due to some things that the Professor needed to attend to. "I have read some rather interesting responses and few are worthy of a mention and some house points."

Harry looked at Hermione who looked expectantly at the Professor.

"Miss Granger, your answer has managed to cover almost everything that one could learn from that class. Ten points to Gryffindor." Before Hermione could show her pleasure or gratefulness, he went on. "However, I would like to deduct five points from Gryffindor for the plain boredom I felt when reading the lengthy answer."

Most of them chuckled; Ron included who went silent after being hit by the death glare from Hermione. She slowly sat down looking at the Professor with disbelief.

"Although I did have a laugh at a few humorous answers." The students in the class were unable to picture Professor Hart laughing. Those who tried were left with a shudder going down their spines. Ron was a prime example. "Five points to Gryffindor and Slytherin respectively on account of Mr Weasley and Mr Malfoy."

Harry looked at both of them incredulously. So were the others in the class.

"I just wrote 'I learned that one should never get on the wrong side of a Professor.'" Ron whispered. Those near them broke into fits of laughter which suddenly died at the menacing stare.

"A deduction of five points from the house of each student who laughed. Disruption in class will not go unpunished." Professor Hart said without emotion. "Let us begin with today's class." He went on without preamble. "Today, I will be assessing your magical strengths." He waved his wand and a shining metallic cube appeared in front of everyone on the desks. "Using your wands, levitate the cube for as long as possible." Everyone extracted their wands and were waiting for the signal, their face held confused looks. How difficult could it be to lift a cube? However, half of the class knew something was different about the cube.

At the Professor's mark everyone performed the levitation charm on the cube. For the first few seconds everyone looked at each other while levitating the cube. It seemed very easy.

Suddenly, the cube started to get heavy and everyone's concentration went back to their cubes.

After a couple of minutes the cubes started to drop on the desks with a light clink. None of the fallen cubes rolled over the desk, magic doing its work.

At the ten minute mark, only six students had cubes in the air. Anthony's arm was shaking with the exertion and was the first to drop the cube among the six. Next went Hermione and Harry soon followed.

Harry had already decided to do drop the cube after Hermione, trying look as inconspicuous as possible. Hermione was breathing heavily and was too tired to notice him. The others in the class were exhausted as well.

The remaining three were Ron, Malfoy and Neville. The last was a surprise to most of them but Harry knew Neville's real potential, so did the other DA members. The level of concentration on their faces was deep, neither refusing to give up.

It looked as if no one was going to drop the cube. However, their trembling hands were telling another story. In a flurry, all three cubes dropped in unison and hit the desks. Was it a tie?

"Well, I was surprised it lasted around seventeen minutes. I didn't have much expectation from this class." Professor remarked in disdain. He earned a glare from the class but looked unperturbed by the hostility. "Here are the results." He waved his wand on the blackboard and a list of names appeared on it, arranged in the order they dropped their cubes.

Ron was at the top while Neville was tied with Malfoy at second and Harry held the third position followed by Hermione.

Malfoy looked at Neville with aversion, while Neville tried to avoid any eye contact with the blond. Ron held a smug look and Hermione just seemed pleased. To Harry, it appeared that she was happy more due to the fact that Ron topped the list rather than her performance.

Everyone eyed Ron with respect and admiration. The very thing he had been craving for. Ron's face held a look of contentment and pride.

"Since now I know how strong each one of you are, I can address to your weaknesses personally." The professor announced. "We will now practice non-verbal spell casting."

There were a few groans from the students, Ron being one of them. Some things never change.

***B***

A surge of adrenaline coursed through his veins; the very excitement overwhelming whatever fear and nervousness he had been feeling.

Harry remembered his past four _missions_, as he had started calling them. In the first one, he was a nervous wreck, barely managing to scrape through. The second one was impromptu and he was mainly trying to protect everyone. Everything he did was on the spur of the moment. The third one... he didn't want to remember that so he quickly went on to the last one. That was the one he was rather proud of. He couldn't believe how subtle and quick he was.

The confidence boiled within him as he left the dark alley, looking for his targets. It was past midnight and Harry had been woken up from his rare peaceful slumber. He was rather late to respond to this alert. Five minutes had already passed.

In that dark lane, only one of the shops was lit which was rather suspicious and Harry silently zeroed in on it. Even though he couldn't make out the name of the shop, after looking through the glass, it turned out to be a women's clothing store; a surprise for Harry.

The invisible Harry peered through the glass to find death eaters perusing glossy clothes hanging from stands. Female death eaters to be exact. That didn't even sound right. Of course Bellatrix Lestrange was a woman but she was practically insane, so she didn't count. However, in hindsight he realized that a female death eater was not as unlikely as it seemed. They were humans after all. Inhuman actually, he corrected himself.

He spotted only two whereas the portkey had mentioned four. The other two must be somewhere inside.

The two he could see were too engrossed in their shopping to notice him. They were giggling like school girls picking up as many clothes as they could. Harry felt like a cop, trying to apprehend a few robbers who were looting a store. Not much of a crime if their usual activity was anything to go by.

He would take them out quickly and without pain. Just like a gentleman. That was a laughable thought but now was not the time. It was time to be subtle and discreet.

He slowly opened the door and the jingle at the top of the door rang, causing the two death eaters to turn in his direction, hands loaded with clothes. _Yeah, Subtle and discreet_...

He froze in the doorway, the half open door still in his hands. Their unmasked faces shocked him. They seemed to be in their early twenties if not younger. What surprised him more was the utter absence of innocence from their faces.

Before they could raise an alarm or draw out their wands, Harry apparated behind them and took them out with silent stunners. After securing them and snapping their wands, he went in search for the other two. He hoped he would take them out quickly; he had some sleep to catch up on. He frowned. Shouldn't he be more worried about the soon arriving Order than his sleep?

All his musings were suddenly replaced by a sense of dread. This was because he could smell blood and burnt flesh as he went further in. This was not good. So not good.

Harry quickened his pace looking for an exit since no one else was visible in the store. He came up at a door, hidden from view. The low moan made his hair stand on end. With apprehension, Harry walked in, the stench and the groans increasing exponentially. He found himself in an empty sitting room. He came at another door, but couldn't find it in himself to open it.

The moans coupled with girlish laughter, coming from the other side of the door, were absolutely revolting. He dreaded what living hell he would find behind that door. He slowly pushed it open and nearly collapsed at the gruesome scene.


	19. The Mysterious Duo

A/N: Really sorry about the late update. I had some interviews and some tests which had kept me busy. I'll try for quicker updates. Anyway, Enjoy!

* * *

The Mysterious Duo

* * *

A cutting air of chill hit Harry in the face, nearly causing him to lose his balance. His stomach crawled with disgust and his pale face blanched at the horrific scene in front of him. The muffled gasp of shock which left Harry was hidden beneath the nightmarish moans and the sickening laughter. His eyes revolted at the ghastly scene; however he was paralyzed by it to even avert his gaze.

A middle aged man, in his pyjamas and barred chest was magically stuck on the wall opposite his bed, hands at his side and legs hanging beneath him. He was drenched in his own blood. Red liquid oozed from his mouth, sapped through the carving from his chest and dripped from the fingers of his hands; or the place where his fingers used to be. A pool of blood was forming below the hanging feet, gradually draining the man of his life force. A small piece of flesh was lying in the pool of blood which explained why the man was not able to scream. _His tongue had been hacked off._

The two death eaters had their backs to him, working on the groaning man, whose eyes were begging for mercy, or for at least a quick death. One of the death eaters was in the process of carving a word on the man's bloodied chest. Harry figured that it would have read 'Filth'.

Harry was in shock, for a few moments he was frozen, his cold body unwilling to respond to his desperate mind. How could anyone be so cruel... so... he couldn't even think of a word that could describe such monstrosity.

The shock was replaced by intense fury, his whole body shook with barely controlled anger.

Forgetting the wand in his hand, he approached his victims, his fists clenched, hungry for blood. He wanted to hurt them, ignoring the fact that he only needed to take them out, and the fact that they were young women. He just wanted to cause pain. He raised his fist ready to strike but a small voice from the corner of his mind stopped him_. Don't do something you will regret later_... The third mission played in his mind and he froze again.

Suddenly, the decision on how to strike his opponents was taken from him. One of the death eaters, who was just standing back and relishing the view, noticed him and whirled around to level the wand at the newcomer.

Harry noticed a sudden movement a few feet away from where he stood, but was a tad late in reacting.

Green light whizzed past his side barely missing him; a very close call indeed. He moved directly between them and sent a quick and silent stunner in the death eater in front of him, who brought up a shield to protect herself.

Even though he had his back to the other death eater, he was right in between them and realized that he was safe from any lethal spell. He thought wrong.

After sending that stunner he spun around to face the death eater who was behind him. The blood covered death eater, with craze in her eyes, sent a killing curse in his direction. "Avada Kedavra!"

Harry, who was already expecting a spell coming his way, dropped to the floor. The moment he hit the floor, another jet green light flew just above his head, in the opposite direction. Very foolish of them.

Before they even knew, their mad eyes turned dead spheres and their bodies dropped to the floor like bags of wheat.

Harry stood up and looked at the dead women, unable to feel any remorse for either of them. It seemed fate had taking justice into its own hands, punishing both with death at the hands of one other.

A small smile broke on Harry's face which quickly disappeared when the dying man slid of the wall, the sticking charm wearing off after the death of the caster.

He began to move towards the blood soaked victim, trying to recollect the healing techniques that he had learned. However, before Harry could reach him, he heard voices coming through the open doorway. He disillusioned himself and waited for whom he suspected as Order members, but just stayed back to confirm it.

"Oh Merlin!" Someone exclaimed at the door and hurried in to check the injured man, followed by six or seven people. "Let's take him to St Mungo's, quick."

That's all Harry needed to hear and disapparated. One of the Order members felt a gust of wind hit his back. He turned around but there was no one.

He was just imagining things or so he thought.

***B***

Harry sat in front of Lance, sunken in his chair and haunted eyes staring at practically nothing. They just sat quietly, no one trying to start a conversation.

Harry couldn't take the silence anymore. "How could anyone be so... so inhuman? I can't even... even imagine how anyone could be like... that."

"Most death eaters are." Lance answered slowly with a sombre look. "What did you think? Only Voldemort is bad and the others are just being deceived by him? They are as bad as him. Their hunger for power, for control draws them towards Voldemort, whose offers are too good for them deny."

"What about those who are rich? They already have power of money, don't they?" Harry asked, still unable to believe a human could steep so low.

"Ah! Money… But that is not enough for them, is it? The power of control over other people is more to their liking. To use any means necessary to get what they want. This blood feud is only a ruse, an excuse to carry out their evil deeds. Voldemort is just giving them a means and in turn taking advantage of them."

Harry felt sick by the terrible truth that he was made aware of. He did have an inkling of it but had disregarded it. There was no chance for redemption for any of Voldemort's minions. They were already at the deep end of the darkness that surrounded them. They were not human, he was sure of that. Just looking like one wasn't enough to qualify. They didn't deserve any mercy; at least none from his side.

***B***

"Harry, are you alright?" Hermione asked with a concerned look. She placed a hand on Harry's pale forehead to check for a fever, but her fingers only felt cold skin.

"You look... like as if you have seen a ghost." Ron noticed, sharing their female friend's look. They were having their breakfasts in the great hall.

Despite the horrific encounter he had late last night, an amused smile broke his face. "I look so good, do I?" Harry said, striking a pose which was anything but handsome. His friends chuckled but their questioning eyes maintained their need for an answer. "I am feeling tired, that's all."

Though Ron looked satisfied with the response, Hermione wasn't. "Didn't sleep well?" Hermione asked with a casual tone but the calculating eyes were telling him a different story.

Her inquisitiveness was irritating him slightly, but Harry didn't show it. "That's right." He didn't elaborate, to the consternation of Hermione.

"Anyway," Hermione began, accepting defeat for once. "I have been doing some research on the two new professors for the last few days." She announced theatrically.

"Why the sudden interest?" Harry inquired. He knew why, but he played along. He was more curious about what she had found.

"There is something really odd about them. I can't really place a finger on it but it is enough to make me suspicious." Hermione explained. It didn't take much to make her suspicious but Harry kept that thought to himself. "Professor Hart acts in a rather strange manner, as if he is trying put up an act. His expressions seem uncoordinated with whatever he says, as if he was representing two different persons."

"And now she has this _silly_ idea that the Professor is actually someone else and is using Polyjuice potion. I think she is blowing things out of proportion." Ron said, rolling his eyes. He looked at Harry for support. None came however.

"You didn't forget the impostor Moody, did you?" Harry asked with a teasing smile. Ron reddened slightly at his gaffe.

Hermione held a pleased look on her face. "So you do agree with me Harry?" She asked, looking at him.

"Not exactly. It's too early to come to any conclusions. However, there is no denying the fact that there is something off about him. So what did you find?" Harry inquired with interest.

"I have learned from one of my sources that Professor Hart used to work in the Auror department." Hermione told them and then paused to give emphasis.

"Sources huh? You don't mean that Skeeter bug, do you?" Harry remarked with a knowing smile.

Hermione didn't respond and looked away, giving Harry the answer he needed.

"What is so weird about the professor working with the Aurors?" Ron asked with a confused look.

"He didn't actually work with Aurors. His job was more of a clerk, filing reports, taking care of the paper work; definitely not a big name in the Auror department. Why would the Minister recommend such a person for the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?" Hermione put forth the question she had in mind. Neither of the other two had a proper explanation for that and hence stayed quiet. "And there's more. The records held by the ministry on their employees are always maintained and scrutinized carefully. They contain everything from your birth till the present date. However, the strange thing about the professor's records is that they only cover the last sixteen years of his life. Any records before that are non-existent. What's more peculiar is that the missing information was not even questioned. It seemed that a more than reliable source had vouched for his character; very reliable indeed. However, the next thing I learnt takes the cake. I am sure this will blow your minds." She paused to give an effect. "The Battle Club is actually Professor Hart's brainchild." Ron gasped while Harry's eyes narrowed with growing interest. "I had found it rather weird that a new professor would be allowed to take control of such a huge event, second only to the Triwizard tournament. However, if we consider that the Battle Club was his idea then it's no big surprise. I get a feeling that this all had been planned in advance, as if they had been waiting for an opportunity to play their cards. What I mean to say is why the sudden interest in Hogwarts by the Ministry? What would they gain besides some profit through the viewership of the tournament? It smells like some conspiracy to me." Hermione took a deep breath after briefing Harry and Ron on her suspicions.

Harry looked at her sharply. "What was at stake for Skeeter to be so helpful?"

Hermione's eyes widened slightly, surprised by that unexpected query. There was an undecided look on her face, her eyes evasive. "You are just jumping to conclusions." She lied badly, her expressions betraying her. Even Ron could decipher that something was amiss.

"Am I?" Harry pushed, even though he knew that she wouldn't budge. He frowned slightly at his own insistence. Hermione didn't respond and looked away. Ron seemed slightly confused at the sudden uncomfortable silence that came over them. Harry knew Hermione was keeping some secrets from them. However, he decided to leave it alone for the moment. "Anyway, what did you learn about Professor Carlson?"

Hermione met Harry's unreadable eyes. She paused, trying to arrange her thoughts. "Not much really, but that seems to be the problem. I have heard other professors talk about him, mentioning the fact that he was a renowned professor in America but was born here. So there should have been at least some mention about him in the records which were searched. No luck there as well. Moreover, his behaviour in class is also questionable. He is competent but he looks at us with distaste, as if he dislikes younger people."

"You are only saying that because he doesn't entertain your questioning about the topics he teaches." Ron pointed out with a smirk.

Hermione glared at Ron, who seemed unruffled. "That's not the point. You both cannot refute the fact that he seems to be fighting to maintain composure whenever he is teaching us. It's as if this is his first job as a professor. He seems to be forcing himself to teach us, as if he was following... orders."

"From... from You-Know-Who?" Ron whispered, looking around as if expecting Voldemort to jump from behind a sofa. "That's absurd."

"We can never be sure. It has happened in the past, so we can never rule that out." Hermione stated, shaking her head.

Harry couldn't help but agree with Hermione. He had this same feeling in his gut that something was wrong about both of them. His doubts seemed to strengthen when another person had voiced their suspicions. He will have to watch out for any slip ups or anything that would reveal their true intentions. Until then he would play the silent observer.

"Harry, have you thought about getting our Quidditch team ready?" Ron changed the subject in his usual abrupt manner.

Hermione looked somewhat relieved from getting out of the spotlight. With a small smile, Harry answered Ron's question. "Actually, like last year, I have asked the Headmistress to have two co-captains for the Gryffindor team." Harry sent a knowing smile at Ron, whose eyes flashed in recognition. He only pointed a finger at himself, unable to voice his surprise. Harry just nodded in confirmation. Ron's shining eyes glazed with unshed tears of happiness, a wide grin plastered on his face.

"Are you sure?" Ron said with disbelief. He was being granted the very thing that he craved for. Quidditch was his life, his passion. He felt honoured to be a captain of his team. There was nothing more he could wish for, his dream finally getting fulfilled. Harry, who already knew all this, nodded again with a smile. "Thank you..." Ron said with emotion.

Had Harry asked anything in exchange, Ron would have given him without a second thought. Now was not the time though, Harry thought. _He didn't just think that!_ He looked away, trying to the hide the shocked look that was possibly evident on his face. When did he start taking advantage of other people?

"Did you get this cleared by Professor Hart?" Ron inquired, bringing Harry out of his disturbing thoughts.

Harry looked at Ron with confusion, his head still coulded. "Why?"

"Because he is the Head of our house." Ron said slowly, as if explaining to a five year old. Hermione was just observing Harry, making him slightly uncomfortable.

"I guess it didn't come to my mind. I will ask him after the next class. I don't think he should have anything against my suggestion." Ron looked doubtful, so Harry added. "After all, I have the approval of the headmistress."

***B***

"Remus!" Harry called out as he spotted the person holding the last ties to his father, entering Hogwarts. He had just finished with his morning run and was on the way back to the school.

Remus turned around, his wolfish traits enhancing his hearing ability, and waved at Harry.

Harry slowed down as he reached him, trying to catch his breath. Remus stood there, examining the changed Harry, whose sweatshirt clung to his lean and chiselled body. Besides, even his face looked different. The softness that his face usually held was only visible in traces. His thinned lips and sharp green eyes gave him a more matured look. The only thing constant was his ruffled and untidy hair. Even Merlin wouldn't have been able to make them look respectable. Remus smiled and said. "Alright lad?"

"Yeah..." Harry replied but Remus could feel the undercurrent of pain in his voice. He didn't enquire however; he knew well how Harry behaved when asked personal questions. 'I am fine.' was the reply anyone usually got from him.

The horrific scenes that Harry had faced the night before were still fresh in his mind. Even a morning run didn't help him get rid of them. "How have you been doing?" Harry questioned with a concerned eyes, taking in the haggard look of his father's friend. "Had a rough moony night?" He added with a knowing smile. It had been a full moon yesterday and transforming into a werewolf really took a toll on Remus' body.

"It's been tough, the past few fortnights. The transformation without a proper Wolfsbane potion has been rather difficult for me. It had been invented by Snape and only he could make it perfectly. I have found the skills of the potioneers at St Mungo's rather wanting." Remus replied with a dark look.

Harry felt rage building up inside him. Snape was going to pay dearly. He was even worse than Voldemort.

They started walking side by side and Harry found that they were going in the direction of the Headmistress' office. "So what brings you here? Shouldn't you be resting?" Harry asked worriedly.

Remus just looked straight ahead with an unreadable expression. "I have some Order business with the Headmistress."

"And you can't tell me what it is?" Harry said with a slightly injured look. Remus stopped in his step and looked over at Harry who was avoiding his gaze.

"Do you want to know? Do you want to be a part of the Order?" Remus asked with genuine curiosity.

Harry's eyes widened at the unexpected invitation. "Of course I want to be in the Order. I hate to be kept out of the loop. But are you sure you can make this happen? Not many will be happy with my inclusion. They will say that I am too young and give other similar stupid excuses."

"Well, it won't be easy but I will do my best." Remus replied determinedly.

"What about Ron and Hermione?" Harry asked. His friends had also been dying to be Order members.

Remus shook his head. "I can try but I won't be too hopeful if I were you. Getting you in would be in itself a humungous task."

They resumed their walk, each lost in their own thoughts.

"What have the Order been doing nowadays?" Harry asked out of the blue.

Remus looked around for any eavesdroppers and guided Harry to an empty class. "I shouldn't be telling you all this but I will make an exception. However, I would request you to keep it to yourself whatever I am going to tell you." Remus casted a Muffliato charm at the door and began. "We are no more a retaliatory force. We have begun to take the fight to the enemy. You remember the spy network I had told you about? It is still active. The Order, under the leadership of Moody, has recruited more members, increasing our size to a formidable number. We have formed rapid action assault units that searches and takes out death eaters. Though we are a bit slower in response at the moment, but we are working on reducing the delay."

"So everything is going smoothly I guess?" Harry inquired with a stoic expression, trying to hide his amusement at the answer he would get. He was not mistaken.

"Well, I wouldn't say smooth. We are catching a lot of death eaters but there is one thing that has been happening." Harry did his best to conceal the smile that was threatening to escape him. "There is a person, whose identity is still unknown, who has been doing our work for us."

"Is he on our side?" Harry said with surprise, his acting skills being tested.

However, Remus was too engrossed in his explanation to notice any discrepancies in Harry's acting. "It looks that way. However, most of us do not agree with the way he works. He has killed three death eaters and has broken wands of almost all the death eaters that he has taken out."

"Three?" Harry asked with astonishment. _When did he... Oh! That's right_. Those two death eaters who had killed each other; they might have thought he did it.

"Yes three." Remus said, frowning slightly at Harry, confused by his reaction. "What... has been more disturbing is the fact that he seems to be much stronger and has unimaginable power as per the few members who have seen him. I don't know how much truth is there in their ramblings but we will have to wait and see." Remus looked at his watch and said quickly. "I am running late. If I learn some more, I will surely tell you. I will be going now. Take care. Bye." They both nodded to each other and parted ways at the doorway of the class.

***B***

Harry was on his way to the library. All the classes for today had finished and most of the students were loitering in the corridors. As he passed them, they threw dirty looks at him, eying him with resentment. Harry put on an act of indifference and moved on.

He couldn't understand why he was being hated so much. Shouldn't their animosity towards him start to diminish as the time progressed? Even if what they thought about him was somehow true, it didn't warrant such behaviour. _I guess Dumbledore didn't consider such a scenario in his plans_, Harry thought with irritation. He didn't like being targeted with such hatred.

This wasn't the first time though. People have hated him throughout his life for all the wrong reasons. He was surprised at how was he able to live through so much bitterness.

Then a new thought occurred to him. _Could he use this hatred to fulfil one of his missions?_ He had seen how the students acted when around him. It looked as if he was the only Slytherin among all the Gryffindors in the school. Could he really handle it? He would have to test it at least. As soon as this thought occurred to him, he found a few test subjects in front of him.

A few students, possibly in their third years, were having a verbal duel which was soon turning into a shouting match. Wands were just waiting to be drawn.

Harry approached them stealthily and spoke rather sharply when he was right behind them. "What's going on?" He put on a scary Snape-ish look for effect.

Everyone jumped and turned around to look at him with a hint of fear in their eyes. Of the seven, four were Gryffindors and the rest were Slytherins. They were all short and hence Harry towered over them looking at them with piercing eyes and thinned lips. The Headmistress was rather good at the latter part and Harry tried to copy her.

A few of them gulped and moved towards each other, irrespective of which house they belonged to. The bravest one of them spoke up. "We… we were just having a… a discussion."

"_A_ _discussion?_" Harry said mockingly. "I see. But why would you be using your wands for a _discussion_?" Harry said with a deathly calm voice, pointing his finger at the drawn out wands held by some of the students, which they quickly concealed. Harry took out his own wand, wiping it slowly at his robes, as if removing blood of it. He licked his lips and said. "I think you should be punished for this offense." With menacing eyes he looked at each of them and slowly moved towards them with a devilish smile or at least something scary.

They backed away, scared out of their wits. They were moving into a dead end but they realized it too late. Before they could do anything about it, Harry spoke up. "On second thought, I will just deduct points. It wouldn't do well for such young students to end up in the infirmary for such a trivial matter." The students shivered at the hidden threat. "Five point deduction each." Saying which, Harry turned around and left the frightened students alone.

"He is creepy. Worse than how Snape had been." One of the Gryffindor said with a tremor in his voice.

"I see that none of you have pissed your pants. Gryffindors actually do have some courage." A Slytherin commented which invited a couple of laughs.

"You guys are not half bad yourself if we overlook your ghostly pale faces." A few more chuckles could be heard.

"I guess we should plan our future _discussions _to avoid being mauled by that vicious Head Boy." They broke into an echoing laughter, all animosity between them forgotten.

Harry smiled at himself. He had actually stayed back under the disillusionment charm to hear what followed. So it did work. However, further testing was required.

***B***

"What's with the crowd?" Harry asked a student nearest to him as he entered the Gryffindor common room after returning from the library. There was a large group of students reading something from a notice board, chatting excitedly among them.

The student he asked turned out to be Colin who point blank ignored him and went to farthest corner of the common room that he could find. _Now what did he do wrong?_ Then again, he didn't need to do anything to make people averse of him.

He moved towards the crowd but there were too many students near the board. He spotted a redhead among them. "Hey Ginny!" He called out. She turned around and after noticing him, made her towards him with an excited smile.

"So, what's all the ruckus?" Harry asked her with an amused grin.

"A list of matches for the first round of the Battle Club tournament has been put. I am against some fourth year." She exulted with excitement, her eyes twinkling like diamonds. Harry couldn't help but smile at the happy face. He wished he could be as happy as her; but it was not to be. Not untill he managed to finish off Voldemort, which was easier said than done.

"Umm... something on my face?" Ginny asked with a slightly abashed look under the intense gaze Harry was giving her.

"No such thing. I see you are very excited about this club." Harry said looking towards the direction of the crowd.

"Aren't you? I am practically bursting with excitement. Can't wait to duel and kick those Slytherin asses."

Harry chuckled looking back at Ginny. "Had any practice yet?"

"No, I haven't. I was thinking, you know… about…" she paused trying to arrange her words. "I could practice with you." She blurted out her request, her eyes avoiding Harry's. "I mean whenever you are free..." her voice trailed off when Harry's face remained impassive. "It's alright if you don't-"

"Have you tried asking Ron about it? He is much better trained and skilled than me." Harry said, again looking around the common room. He wasn't interested in training someone else. He had a lot on his plate already. As his eyes moved over the entirety of the room, he spotted Dean throwing vicious looks in his direction.

"Even if hell came on Earth, I would still not go and ask him to train me. It would be nothing less than torture if I did." Ginny said with intensity.

Still looking at Dean, he laughed wholeheartedly. He might have overdone with his laughter but it served its purpose. Dean stood up, looking at him sharply. _If only looks could kill_. "Alright, I will teach you whatever I know. Don't expect too much though." Harry agreed, looking back at her.

Ginny's eyes widened with surprise, however before she could say anything, a voice spoke from behind Harry.

"Did you have a look at the list, Harry?" Hermione asked.

Harry turned around to look at his two best friends. "Why? I am not going against either of you guys right?" He asked with mock apprehension.

"No." Ron replied and Harry took an outrageously deep sigh of relief. The red heads chuckled while the once bushy haired girl rolled her eyes.

"You are actually up against Colin." Hermione stated. Harry's eyes narrowed. There was the explanation for his behaviour earlier.

"Is it a knockout tournament?" Harry asked with a slight concern in his voice. Colin was a good duellist. It would be rather unlucky for him to be eliminated by Harry so early in the tournament.

"No it's not." Hermione began with her usual lecturing tone. "From what I have read, these matches are being used to decide the final team of ten from each house. Also a group of twenty probables from each house are being chosen for the individual competition including those ten. For now, all duels will be within the same house." She took a deep breath and went on. "It seems to be like a pyramid style tournament." Everyone gave her a confused look so she explained with her usual superiority. "In these kinds of tournaments, each participant is awarded points in increasing order. The first round winners get one point and the second round winners get two points and so on. The winners of the previous round will have to compete in the next round while the losers compete among themselves. So even if you lose one round you would still have a chance to catch up by winning your next rounds. However, it is important to win the later rounds because they give more points for a victory. Also, the more you win, the tougher your opponents will be since you would be up against students with wins under their belt as well."

Harry and Ginny seemed to have understood the concept but Ron looked blankly at Hermione. "Come again?"

"Ron, I suggest you concentrate on winning on each round and leave the calculations to the scorer." Hermione said with a slightly defeated look. How much more could she have elaborated to make Ron understand?

Ron and Hermione started their usual bickering while Ginny played the amused audience. Harry's thoughts drifted to the tournament. It was interesting indeed and he found himself looking forward to it.

***B***

Six days. Six days and still no news about Cho. Auror White seemed confident about their chances but he founded it difficult to feel the same. What could he do himself to find her? He didn't have any resources that he could make use of or any information that could give him clues.

"Earth to Harry." Ron whispered to him from his side. "You shouldn't be day dreaming while in a class."

"Look who's talking." Hermione remarked quietly, who was sitting next to Ron. Harry could hear the smile within her words.

It was Thursday and they were in Transfiguration class. They were being taught on how to conjure animals.

Harry's lack of attention was not due to the fact that the subject was boring; it was just the grim thoughts playing in his mind.

Professor Carlson was paying him or anyone else for the matter, the least attention. He also seemed to be hurrying on with whatever he was teaching, denying any queries or doubts that came from the students. A conventional behaviour.

"Refer the book. It has been explained in detail." This was his usual sharp reply when asked about some difficult topics. He was more interested in finishing with the class than engaging the students.

He watched as the professor droned about the subject. Hermione's deductions seemed accurate. The way he looked was a stark contrast to the way he spoke. His soft features violently clashed with his curt demeanour. He acted as if no one was in the class.

"I have just heard something today." Hermione told them with a low mysterious voice, drawing Harry's attention to her with a raised eyebrow. It was not like her to chat in class. It had to be something important. After looking around, Hermione continued "Our two new professors seem to be meeting each other a lot. Very suspicious if you ask me."

"And where did you hear that?" Ron asked curiously.

"I heard some rumours." Ron seemed to buy Hermione's explanation but Harry didn't. However, he didn't betray his suspicions. "I mean, look at their age difference. And also they might not even know much about each other. So what could be the reason behind their interactions?" The question was left hanging in the air as the class ended and the trio had to move out. They warily walked over to their last class of the day, trying to figure out what surprise Professor Hart had in store for them.

The door was open and the professor was already seated. The students who had entered the class before the trio stood around the desks undecidedly. The reason was rather strange.

The desks which used to seat three had been reduced to two, while more were added to maintain the number of seats. _Now what could be the twisted reason behind this? _Harry thought.

Ron and Hermione looked at Harry and then looked at each other, unable to make up their mind on what to do. Harry helped them up. "You both take a desk, I will sit behind you." They looked uncertainly at each other and nodded.

The seats started to fill up but the place next to Harry was left empty, no one wanting to sit next to him. Susan, who seemed to have entered last, eyed the seat next to Harry. She came over to him and asked, "Do you mind if I sit next to you?"

"Do you?" Harry countered with a grin. She shook her head and returned the smile. Harry moved over slightly, inviting her to sit next to him. Harry looked over his shoulder to see that there were still a few desks which were unoccupied. He moved his eyes onto his desk partner, who had a rather pleased smile on her face. This confused him slightly.

Harry looked back to the front of the class, who seemed to be observing them like a hawk.

A few more minutes of silence and the class started to fidget in their seats, the quietness making them feel uneasy. Harry could perceive a sickly smile on the professor's face. He seemed to be rather enjoying it.

Harry had a good mind to tell the professor to stop these childish games but he held himself back since he had a request that needed an approval from Professor Hart; the Head of Gryffindor House.

Finally, satisfied by the discomfort his class was under, he stood and spoke in his usual curt voice. "For today's class, we will be having a duelling exercise…" Everyone seemed upbeat by that announcement and some even cheered. "…against me." A deathly silence presided over them as if someone had died. Everyone knew how the professor was; going up against him was like digging your own grave. "For the duel, two of you will go against me. One will play defence while the other one will play offence. The seating arrangement has already paired you up so that saves us the trouble." So that was the reason behind the dual seating; seemed a lot of trouble for such a small thing. "If either of you get knocked out, you lose."

"What if you get knocked out?" Malfoy said with his usual smirk.

The professor continued as if there wasn't any interruption. This disregard on the professor's part seemed to enrage Malfoy. He would have been satisfied if the Professor had gotten angry at his remark. "There will be no lethal curses. Let us get started." Everyone stood up and moved to the back of the class where there was a large enough space to hold a duel.

One by one each pair went against the professor, most of them getting stunned within a few seconds. The Professor's duelling skills were very sharp; too sharp for just a clerk working in the Auror Department. Harry looked over at Hermione who was eyeing at him with a knowing look.

Harry and Susan didn't last long either; Susan who was playing defence was taken out by a petrification charm. Harry realized that he should have played defence but his mistake couldn't be undone now. He revived Susan, who after regaining her conscious, gave Harry an apologetic look.

"It's no big deal, you did your best." Harry assured her with a smile. He gave her a hand and helped her to her feet.

Malfoy and Zabini fared better than the others, lasting out the assault for a while till a stunner knocked out Zabini.

However, Ron and Hermione, the last pair, was a totally different story. Hermione was rather skilfully defending themselves while Ron kept the Professor busy with his rapid fire of powerful curses. They worked as a team, moving in coordination, as if they had been training together for a long time.

The Professor on the other hand, was mostly immobile, relying on his power and quick spell casting. One of the cutting hexes from Ron escaped his solid defence, and hit the professor around the neck region. There was a snap and the amulet fell to the floor.

Suddenly, Harry felt as if a cold gust of wind hit him forcefully, but without moving a single strand of his hair. The sudden feeling of energy in the air caused a tingling sensation all over his body.

The next spell from the Professor pierced Hermione's shield and struck Ron down. The energy from the spell casted by the Professor resembled Ron's. The professor bent down to pick up the amulet, repaired it with a spell and put it back around his neck.

The tingling sensation disappeared and Harry found himself breathing more easily. The Professor walked back to the front of the class while the class followed, some in a daze while others fervently whispering among themselves.

Harry waited for his friends who were walking towards him after Hermione had revived Ron. Ron had a confused look while Hermione had wide eyes relaying her astonishment.

Professor Hart acted as if nothing had happened and without giving any explanation, ended the class.

Harry stayed back as everyone walked, after Hermione sent him a look which could have resembled We-have-things-to-discuss. When the class was empty, Harry approached the professor with trepidation. Being alone in the same room as Professor Hart was not to his liking.

The Professor seemed to be doing some work and didn't even look up. Harry went straight to the point. "Sir, I want Ron Weasley as a co-captain along with for our Quidditch team."

"It's your decision. Do what you think is best." The response surprised him. He expected some resistance against his decision.

"Thank you." Harry left without another word and went straight to the Gryffindor common room.

"Where is Hermione?" Harry asked the grinning Ron, who he had just told about the professor's acceptance of him as a co-captain.

"Library. She needed to check something." Ron replied offhandedly with dreamy eyes.

Harry didn't see Hermione the whole evening and she even skipped dinner. This was not unusual when considering Hermione but he was still slightly worried.

"Ron, I think you need to go check on her and see what she is doing." Harry requested of him as they left the great hall. Ron nodded in agreement and left for the library while Harry headed to his quarters.

***B***

Harry trailed them from the shadows while his quarry, numbering in six, moved cautiously to wherever they were going. They were in a desolate neighbourhood; all the houses were vacant with broken windows and doors left ajar. There didn't seem to be a living soul in sight besides the death eaters. Harry could have attacked sooner but he was more interested in their destination. It could be possibly a safe house protected by wards and hence the requirement for them to walk over to it. The more death eaters he took out the better.

Earlier, Harry had just entered his quarters when the portkey had vibrated. However, he had been rather quick and had activated the portkey within a few seconds.

He stealthily closed on them under the disillusionment charm, watching their every move. They slowed down, and after briefly looking around, headed towards a dilapidated building, which didn't seem any different from the others. The only difference was the tingling Harry felt as he approached the building while walking through the wards. He had found the safe house. Time for infiltration.

A silent chuckle escaped him. He felt like a soldier in a movie, planning to storm an enemy hideout. But this was very real.

The six death eaters entered through the door and Harry spotted a guard behind it. He would have to time it properly if wanted to remain unnoticed. He waited for a moment and then concentrated on apparating just inside the door.

The guard was too surprised to react and before any voice could escape him, he was down. After securing him and taking care of his wand, he moved along the dirty passageway looking for his other victims. Hmm... victims was a rather a strong word but he flicked that thought out of his mind.

Light seemed to seep through the cracks of one of the doors. He peeped through one the cracks and found around ten death eaters sitting at a round table having a discussion in hushed tones. Harry took a moment to plan out his attack strategy to take them out as swiftly as possible with minimum damage to either side. A low muffled wail came through the darkness of the long passageway. Harry's hair stood at end. It sounded female. And familiar... Could it be...?

Forgetting the death eaters for the time being, he quickly moved towards the source of the sound, dreading what he would find. No more moans came which he could have followed to find where the voice was coming from. However, his problem resolved as he found himself at the other end of the passageway, in front of the only other door besides the one he had found earlier.

He had an odd sense of deja vu. The metal door was bolted from the outside and a repulsive stink was coming from behind it. He clutched his wand with such force that his knuckles were starting to turn white. His wand light was the only source of illumination in the pitch black passage.

Unable to stand there any longer, he pulled at the bolt and pushed at the door, uncaring for the noise it made.

The stale air hit Harry's nostrils, causing him to nearly retch at the stink of decay and faeces. His eyes stung due to the acidic smell even though he was wearing the magical lenses. At first he couldn't see anything but as his eyes adjusted to the near darkness, he went pale at what he saw. A skeleton clung from rusted wrist restraints, clothed in decaying rags.

Harry swallowed the bile that was threatening to escape his mouth. The one who had cried out was definitely alive. Forcing his eyes to look away, he moved in further, his wand light playing with the creepy shadows.

An outline of a figure started to form in the darkness, lying on the floor, back resting against the black wall. The closer he moved, the more horrified he was at the broken form he found his friend in. _He knew she was Cho_.

On closer look, he found that she was had been actually cruelly suspended from her bloody wrists, her back an inch above ground. The dirty robes she wore were torn to shreds, barely covering her modesty. Stains of dried blood were all over her clothes. Her pale face was smeared by dirt and deep cuts that refused to stop bleeding. Her squinted eyes twitched as if in unbearable pain. Her parched lips were like a barren land of a desert. She was nearly unrecognizable.

Her breaths were irregular and shallow. She was alive. Barely. She needed immediate medical attention. Something beyond his limited healing skills. But there was no way he could apparate her out from here while they were within the wards. It was very risky under the current circumstances. He had to move her out.

"Cho..." Harry said with as much softness as he could muster. To his horror, she shrank back against the wall trying to curl her legs but the restraints on her legs disallowed even that movement. Her head turned in the opposite direction and her mouth tried to say something but no sound came out.

Harry couldn't watch it anymore. She suffered because she was once his friend and that too for a very short time.

He had to free her first. He tried to cut the chain but it seemed to repel magic. He tried a powerful cutting curse but it didn't work either, only ended up hurting Cho's wrist, drawing out a weak cry of pain.

"I am... I am so sorry..." Harry whispered, but there was no reaction from her besides the whimpering.

He spotted a small padlock, which was responsible for holding together the restraints. Try as he might, but it refused to budge. Each failed attempt enraged him further until finally he snapped. His whole body shook with intense fury that he had never felt before. His wand was letting out sparks of uncontrolled magic.

With bloodshot eyes, he turned around and faced the door. They were going to pay. Pay dearly.


	20. The Deception

A/N: Alright, I lied. Sorry for another late update. But here is it anyway. It's a long one. Read on!

* * *

The Deception

* * *

Cain sat at the table, utterly uninterested in the meeting taking place over it. He didn't belong here anyway. He was too weak at heart and was not cut out for this sort of work. It was only due to his brother that he was forced to join the death eaters. However, he did like torturing people. That was the only part that he enjoyed as a death eater. It gave him a sense of power over others. The very thing he lacked.

A sharp metallic screech brought him out of his musings.

A sense of dread coursed through his veins and he looked at others who didn't seem to share his apprehension. Maybe he got scared too easily.

They were quickly on their feet and slowly approached the door. One of them opened it and cautiously peeked outside but no one was in sight. The death eaters trickled outside and one of them headed towards the front door to check on the guard. Cain stood at the back, having no desire to indulge in a life threatening situation.

"Mizz is down! Wands out! We need-" The death eater at the main door was cut off and then a deathly silence loomed over them.

"Kurt..." One of them called out, fear lacing his voice. Cain trembled when no answer returned from the doorway. Their only exit seemed to have become the gateway to afterlife.

There was a bone chilling clanging sound that came from behind them causing everyone to turn around. Suddenly, Cain found himself in the front. He wanted to move back but was frozen with fear.

They couldn't see the doorway but heard the eerie creaking of the door opening slowly as if letting out the demons of the underworld. At least that's what Cain's imagination told him.

Then what followed scared them all, enough to crap their pants.

Cain stared in the darkness as if to uncover the hidden horrors that approached them.

The sound of chains dragging on the floor hit his ears, causing Charlie's body to shiver uncontrollably.

"Who is there?" A wavering voice called out from behind him the only reply was the ever increasing sound of chains. No footsteps, no sounds of breathing.

Cain wanted to run, to flee but it seemed he was unable to escape the clutches of the fear that had conquered his mind.

As the sound grew closer, a figure started to form under the dull illumination from their wand light. A humanoid figure.

There were a few differences though, to put it mildly. First would be that it had no flesh, just skull and bones, adorned with dirty rags. Then it seemed to be floating above ground, like a spectre approaching its victim.

The deep hollow eyes of the skull pierced Cain and his heart stopped. Literally. His weak heart couldn't take it anymore. His hand went to his chest but before he could even realize it, he was dead.

***B***

The others barely registered that one of them had dropped to the floor in front of them, their eyes glued to the approaching demon. A part of their mind which was more cognizant, told them that it was only magic and not real. But the terror completely overrode them. The wands in their hand, which was pointed towards the spectre, lay forgotten.

Suddenly, two heart curdling screams came from behind. They turned around to find two of their comrades on the floor, clutching their legs and groaning in pain. There was no one that they could see who caused the damage.

Terror struck, they rushed to the only lighted room where they were having a meeting, forgetting their fallen death eaters.

They closed the door behind them and turned around to point the wand at the entrance.

The light of the room gave them a false sense of security but it was short-lived.

As the door opened, a stream of curses came towards the open door. But it just went through empty air. There was no one.

Another couple of screams and two more had gone down, clutching their legs, which seemed broken. But the caster was not visible. And why couldn't they even see the trail of the spell fire? Where exactly was their attacker? Such were the desperate thoughts that raced through the shaken minds of the death eaters who were still standing. For the moment that is.

There was a sudden movement at the door, drawing everyone's attention. There stood a man, clothed in a blue robe. Actually that was the only thing that they could see as his face was in the shadow. Besides his eyes that is; those malevolent blue eyes. The gaze was so sharp that it could have cut ice. His wand was held loosely at his side, as if mocking them, challenging them openly.

"You all are going to wish for death when I am done with you." A low venomous voice left the man's throat, dripping with a hunger for blood. An involuntary shudder left the death eaters.

A minute later, all of them were writhing on the floor, groaning in pain, some even had passed out, unable to stand the agony.

Harry stood tall among the fallen men, his right hand holding a key, which he had managed to _coax_ out of the death eaters. A sickly smile was on his face. He felt an unexplained satisfaction.

He heard a sound behind him and apparated directly to the dungeon like room where Cho was being held captive. He swiftly unlocked the chains using the key and looked around for another way out. There was none. He heard loud voices coming through the open door which sounded like the Order. _Should he leave her here for the Order to find?_

Even before that thought passed him, his mind had made its decision. Harry pulled out his other wand and standing in front of Cho, he sent two jets of powerful bludgeoning curses that he could manage at the section of the wall below the small window. The wall cracked and a thundering sound was caused by the impact but it still remained standing. Again he tried and this time, the sound was louder and the cracks widened and the window pane broke. His third attempt paid dividends, a clean whole was blown through the crumbling wall but it was still too small. Two more hits and the hole became large enough to pass through. Pocketing his wands, he gently lifted Cho, who tried to resist with a slight moan. Harry was rather surprised at how light she was. Rage again burned within him but he tried to suppress it. He had already dealt with them after all.

Harry whispered words of comfort and safety which sounded rather meaningless and hollow to himself. However, it managed to quieten her and she stopped moving, her cold body making him feel like he was carrying a corpse. Her eyes were unfocused and her head lolled in his arms. She looked broken; beyond repair. _NO! He would save her!_

He squeezed through the opening along with her and walked quickly away from the building. As soon as he was past the wards, he apparated directly in front of St Mungo's. He went in and caught attention of the nearest healer he could see.

Harry had a cloak on himself to throw a shadow over his face. "I need your help. She needs immediate attention." Saying which he conjured a stretcher, gently placing her on it.

"What happened?" The healer enquired in shock, taking in the condition Cho was in.

"Death Eaters" Was the only reply before Harry apparated away. The healer's eyes nearly popped out. How could anyone bypass the strong anti-apparition wards around St Mungo's?

***B***

Harry appeared in the astronomy tower, his mind in a violent turmoil. He should have apparated to his room directly but he wasn't thinking straight. The cold air brushed against his pale face, his eyes seeing everything but nothing.

He removed the mask and the lenses and increased the length of his hair. As he undid the transfiguration on his clothes, he heard a noise behind and quickly whirled around.

"Harry?" Luna called out.

There were many simple and harmless ways to deal with the situation but Harry's tormented thoughts had clouded his mind. So he did the worst possible thing. "Obliviate!"

Luna's eyes turned glassy and Harry had this odd feeling of extracting his own self from someone else's mind. However, he had no control over the memory charm and only managed to break free from what he was doing with great difficulty.

Luna stood there like a mannequin with a blank look on her face.

Horrified with what he had done, Harry raced away from the tower, running without direction or destination. Tears stung his eyes and his vision clouded. He tripped and fell flat on his face, grazing his forehead and possibly breaking his nose.

He lay there lying in agony. However, it was not the physical pain that he was feeling, but the mental trauma he had just been through.

Cho had suffered greatly because of him. He couldn't do anything to protect her. She was so damaged that Harry feared the worst. A shiver went down his spine and his stomach felt queasy. He pulled himself on all four limbs which wavered weakly.

Then he remembered what he did to those death eaters and vomited.

He had tortured them, broken their bones and had found a rather morbid satisfaction through it. He acted just like a death eater, which was extremely revolting. A sense of self-loathing ate away at his strength as he dragged himself towards the wall and rested his back.

And if that was not enough, he had used a memory charm on one of his close friends. How could he? What if something went wrong and he did something to her mind like what happened to Professor Lockhart?

The more he thought about it, the more he drowned in the despair that was trying to swallow him whole.

He couldn't take it anymore. His eyelids started to feel heavy and his consciousness began to slip away from him. He drifted off to a nightmarish sleep in the corridor, his moans echoing in the corridor like a haunted soul.

***B***

An emergency meeting was never a good sign; especially the ones called by Moody. It was past midnight but Moody didn't care, did he?

Out of those who had arrived, some were murmuring among themselves while the others were doing their best to fight off their sleep. Few of them had lost that battle and were snoring peacefully.

Moody entered the meeting room and was livid at the state of the Order members. _They were supposed to be the inner circle, damn it!_

He marched his way towards his chair, the furious plonking of his artificial leg silencing the crowd at the table and waking the ones asleep.

He sent a piercing gaze at each one of the gathered members but it didn't draw as much reaction from them as the new members did. He was slightly disappointing by that.

Minerva was sitting at his side and the other seat next to him was occupied by Tonks. Those two very contrasting people but were worthy of his respect. Remus was absent, so was Rubeus. They were on missions to deal with the werewolves and the giants respectively.

Moody was still standing and began without any pleasantries in his gruff voice. "Do you know why you all have been summoned?"

Only few of them nodded while the others had a look of confusion and irritation. _What could be more important than a good night sleep?_

"For those who don't, let me tell you what has happened few hours ago." Moody continued, his magical eye moving rapidly from one person to another. A rather creepy sight but he had everyone's attention. "One of our scouts had spotted a bunch of death eaters and had alerted us. Interceptors were dispatched but," He sent a death glare at Tonks who was in charge of that team. She just had a sheepish smile on her face. "Those unskilled bastards took too long to trace them. When they did manage to get there, guess what? All the death eaters were already taken out. When I say all, I mean eleven of them. I have a good suspicion about who could have done this... Tonks, debrief them about the actual happenings."

Moody sat down while Tonks stood and cleared her throat. "Our squad of ten found a death eater stunned at the entrance to their hideout. Also his wand had been snapped." This drew a reaction from the other members. They were well aware of who worked in such a manner. "They went in and found three more death eaters, one of which was dead. The report we received from St Mungo's indicated that he died of heart attack." Some of them raised their eyebrows in surprise. "We found something that could have caused his death. Actually it was a skeleton clad in rags and chains hanging from its wrists. I may not be wrong in saying that it was used to scare the death eaters for reasons I don't know. It could be just a distraction but that is just my assumption."

"What happened with the rest of the death eaters?" One of them asked, while the rest of them nodded.

"We found a room in which they seemed to be having a meeting of some sort. When we found them however, they were... in a rather bad shape."

The hesitation didn't go amiss by the rest of the members who were intrigued by this unknown entity. Some found his ways rather cruel while the others agreed with his of working. As per them, death eaters didn't deserve any mercy. "What happened to them?"

"Well... half of them were unconscious while the others were moaning in agony. They were all alive but it seemed that they would have accepted death gladly."

"What did he do them?" One of the impatient ones interrupted Tonks.

"The bones in each of their limbs were broken to pieces. They seemed to have been hit by a barrage of bone breaking curses. None of them had been spared. Oddly enough, only the limbs were targeted. It was as if whoever attacked them didn't want them killed."

"Why do you think he hurt them? It isn't his usual MO." Charlie mused.

"Why are we assuming that it is the same person? It is impossible that one person could take so many out. I find it rather foolish that we are jumping to conclusions." One of the new members said with an air of superiority.

"Stop making stupid remarks if you don't have the complete information." Moody said raising his voice.

Tonks nodded at Moody appreciatively and continued. "We do not know why they were hurt so badly but we do know that it was him... or her." She added with a twinkle. Some of them scoffed at that. "One of our members spotted someone in blue robes just before he disapparated. Mind you, there were anti-disapparition wards around the hideout so that does narrow down the list. If we have a list that is." She said with a chuckle.

"Why haven't the death eaters been questioned? I am sure they could throw some light on his identity." Bill inquired.

"The thing is, none of them are in any shape to talk. They seem traumatised by what happened to them. Those who were conscious when we had found them were actually glad to come along with us. Some of them even pleaded for it. That does tell us the amount of duress they were in. We tried to extract memories from them but their thoughts were too jumbled to do it properly. We didn't want to take a risk since a failed attempt could mess up their heads and turn them into vegetables. We have decided to wait for them to recover, mentally at least. Their bones would take weeks to heal; such was the extent of damage."

"That person is rather dangerous if you ask me. I am just relieved that only death eaters are his target."

"For the time being..." Another member said quietly. Everyone hoped that wasn't the case.

Hestia turned to Tonks and asked. "That was it? Was that all that happened?"

Tonks shook her head. "That's what our interceptors thought but while they were accessing the situation, they heard a loud blast coming from outside the room. They cautiously went outside and found that the noise was coming from the end of the passage. Someone was trying to break the wall. The booms happened and a few times and then stopped. They heard a rustle of chains and then silence. They raced towards the noise to find a dungeon type room with a huge hole in the wall. There was an empty set of chains which seemed to have held someone recently. They couldn't find anyone outside when they looked through the hole."

"So what you are trying to say is that there was a prisoner and our vigilante left with him?"

"Her, actually." Tonks corrected. "We found strands of hair near the chains. St Mungo's, after looking through their database, confirmed a match. The hair belonged to Miss Cho Chang." There were a few gasps of shock. Most of them had nearly given up hope of finding her.

"Where do you think she has been taken?" Emmeline asked.

"We have no clue yet. But she needs medical attention that I am sure of. There was a lot blood where she must have been chained. I believe she might have been tortured by those death eaters. So if his intentions are good then we could find her in one of the magical hospitals."

"Let us hope so. So is that all? Can we leave?"

"No." Moody who had been quiet for some time spoke up. "This meeting was not held to tell you what has happened tonight. Rather, to tell you what has been happening." He paused before continuing, "First of all, let me tell you that I do not approve of the way he works. I am talking about the same person who has been interfering with our strikes. You might think that there is no need to worry. But you are _wrong_." He stressed on the last word. "How is it that he manages to turn up just before our members? Why does he leave the death eaters behind as if expecting someone to clean up the mess? How does he know when and where to find the death eaters?" He paused again, giving others time to let his words sink in. "The answer is rather simple actually." He sent a piercing look at each of the members before announcing. "We have a traitor in our midst."

***B***

There were some whispers and then silence. Some more incoherent sentences and silence again. Sometimes he felt someone's presence while other times he was alone. He was drifting in and out of consciousness, unable to break through the surface.

Slowly, a dull pain in his head and nose started to pull Harry from his slumber, but he didn't open his eyes. The light was too bright. His stomach grumbled from hunger. Or was it showing dissatisfaction about the various distasteful potions residing in it?

He could make out three different voices around his bed The conversation was usually punctuated with long bouts of silence.

Ron, Hermione and Ginny. They were waiting for him to wake up. Their worried voices weren't missed on Harry. If only they knew...

Harry didn't show any signs of being awake. He was arranging his thoughts, thinking of excuses and rejecting them. Of course having Hermione as his interrogator would make this task difficult indeed. He needed a story without a loop hole or any discrepancies that she could jump on.

After a few minutes, Harry let out a low groan to indicate his wakefulness. He slowly opened his eyes, which squinted under the bright light.

***B***

"Harry?" Hermione asked tentatively. Harry didn't respond and looked back at her blankly. "Can you hear me?" She tried again, her forehead wrinkled in worry. Harry nodded but still remained quiet.

"Harry mate, what's wrong?" Ron asked from her side, the tone matching hers.

"Is my name Harry?" The scar head boy asked with confusion, no recognition within his eyes.

Hermione's hand went up to her mouth and a gasp of shock left her. She could hear Ron mumble something like '...bloody hell... he is gone bonkers...'

Her breathing suddenly became heavy and the usually calm Hermione was in full panic. "Do you recognize us?" She asked, dreading and half expecting the answer she would receive.

The negative response from Harry caused her to step back in astonishment. She turned around to find both Ron's and Ginny's faces a similar shade of pale. Ginny looked as if she was on the verge of breaking down while Ron had disbelief written all over his face.

"I'll get Madam Pompfrey." Ginny said in a strong voice, doing well to reign in her emotions. Ron seemed helpless. This was a huge shock for them all.

Harry, it seemed, had lost his memory. But how? And what was he doing in the corridor? Was he attacked? If yes, then by whom? All these questions riddled her mind but the only one who had the answers looked lost and confused.

"What could be worse than getting your head smashed?" Madam Pompfrey was saying as she walked towards Harry's bed from her office, trailed by Ginny. "Couldn't really resist staying away from the infirmary, Mr Potter?" The lack of response brought a frown on her face and her voice softened slightly. "How are you feeling?"

Harry looked thoughtfully, as if trying to come up with a proper reply that would befit his current state. "Empty." was his one worded reply. His eyes hovered over everyone in the room but the look was devoid of any flicker of recognition.

"I was going to tell you but you didn't listen." Ginny said quietly, her eyes staring at the floor. "Harry has lost his memory..."

The nurse's head swivelled so fast in Harry's direction that it wouldn't have surprised anyone if it had just fallen off. Actually, it would have, but that was beside the point.

Madam Pompfrey quickly went to work, moving her wand over Harry, mumbling something under her breath. This went on for a few minutes and as the time passed the frown on her deepened. The other three people in the room stood still, as if their movement would affect the nurse's concentration.

"I have tried everything but I can't seem to detect any lingering effects of a memory charm." She paused, closing her eyes trying to dig deep within her mind that could explain the memory loss. "Unless..." She opened her eyes, glancing at everyone on the room. "Unless this was due to the physical trauma to his head."

A nod came from Hermione, agreeing with the medical analysis. The others didn't care much about an explanation; they were more interested on how to fix his memory.

"Can anything be done?" Ron asked with desperation. Ginny looked up, her eyes hungry for any source of hope.

"Depends." Madam Pompfrey mused, turning back to Harry. "Do you remember anything?"

Harry, who had been trying to follow the conversation with unconcealed confusion, shook his head in dismay. "I can't. I do however, get this feeling that there is something that I have forgotten, that my mind can't grasp, eluding my efforts. My head hurts..." Harry winced slightly, holding his head.

"Drink this potion. It would ease your pain." The nurse said, picking up a vial with a bubbling bluish green liquid.

Harry moved back in the bed, eying the potion as if it was poison. "Potion?"

Ron groaned. "This is bad. Very bad."

Madam Pompfrey ignored the comment and said reassuringly. "It's only medicine. Nothing to worry about it." She thrust the vial into his hands and nodded encouragingly.

Harry glanced at everyone and then looked down at the bubbling potion. He swallowed it down in one go and with wide eyes waited for the poison to take effect. His expression relaxed when nothing major happened and a small smile crept into his face. "The pain is gone. It seems like magic." His smile disappeared when the worried expressions of the others deepened. He looked questioningly at the nurse.

"No need to worry. I suggest you take a nap. Might bring something back." Madam Pompfrey advised. Harry agreed mutely and eased into his bed and closed his eyes.

Everyone stood there reverently, watching the boy in the bed slip into a deep sleep, indicated by the relaxed rise and fall of his chest.

Madam Pompfrey moved first and headed to her office. She took her seat behind her desk and was slightly shocked to find the other three standing in front of her, concerned eyes looking at her helplessly. She hadn't noticed them; she was herself deep in thought on what to do about Harry.

"Madam Pompfrey, there has to be a way!" Hermione exclaimed in a panicked voice.

"It is not permanent, is it?" Ron said with desperation. When the nurse didn't respond, he exhaled. "It cannot be..."

Ginny stood quietly, not meeting anyone's eyes. Her stillness was false; inside she was desperate and panic stricken. She wasn't able to understand why she was being affected so much. It really hurt her when Harry didn't recognize her. It hurt her greatly. But why?

"I know you all are worried about him, but we need to give him time. Time might heal his memories. I will speak with the Headmistress about it and check with some of my colleagues in St Mungo's." The nurse tried to reassure them confidently but they remained in the state of worry.

Before anything could be said, a piercing scream broke the silence. All four rushed out and found Harry sitting up in his bed, clutching his forehead; his scar actually. Blood seemed to be seeping through his fingers.

He didn't react as they neared his bed. "Harry?" Hermione asked tentatively.

The person in question looked up slowly. Surprisingly, a small smile was on his face. "Hello Hermione." Harry said with friendly eyes shining with recognition. He turned to the others and nodded. "Ron, Ginny. Ah, Madam Pompfrey, it seems I couldn't stay away from the infirmary. How about I move here permanently. Might save you the trouble."

Everyone was too shocked to laugh. This was totally unexpected. "Do you remember everything?" Ron asked slowly, internally hoping for a positive answer.

Harry frowned and squeezed his eyes shut. "That depends on what I forgot. I..." He rubbed his hand on his forehead trying to ease the pain. "I can't seem to remember what happened. Did I lose my memory or something?" Everyone nodded. "Finally, something good came off this cursed scar." He said with sarcasm, his eyes studying his palms. Lifting his head up, he asked his friends, "Do you know how this all happened? Was I attacked?" His expression was hopeful, glancing at Ron and Hermione.

They shook their heads. "We want to know that as well. When we found you, your wand was at your side. I thought someone might have attacked you. Your injuries were not severe; just a cut on the forehead and a broken nose. However, the hit on your head might be the reason behind your missing memory. At least as per Madam Pompfrey." She looked at the nurse who nodded in agreement.

"That seems most likely. I couldn't detect any memory charms on you."

"How much do you remember?" Hermione asked curiously.

An expression of intense concentration took over Harry's face which suddenly broke into a mischievous grin. "I remember you all. The book worm," he said glancing at the reddened Hermione and then moved his eyes to Ron. "The thick and stubborn one." Ron's mouth opened and closed like a fish. Harry looked at Ginny and smiled slyly. "The one with a buttered elbow." Ginny blushed a deep red, her eyes round in astonishment. Harry's eyes finally rested on the nurse who was staring at him sternly. "Madam Pompfrey." He stated lamely. After all there was a boundary he couldn't cross without unforeseen consequences.

The other three stared at Harry as if he had gone loony. He wasn't helping his cause by those ridiculous comments.

Hermione's pensive eyes were trying to assess the situation, trying to come up with a plausible explanation that could describe such an odd behaviour. Ginny still looked flushed by his earlier comment.

"Harry, are you alright?" Ron asked warily. St Mungo's didn't seem far for Harry according to him.

"I think I am. Just can't remember what happened before I ended up here." Harry responded, his expressions turning sombre.

"What's the last thing you can recollect?" Hermione pressed him with calculating eyes. Was there speculation, scepticism in her brown eyes?

There was a pause wherein Harry tried to focus, trying to retrieve the missing piece of the puzzle of his mind. He shook his head and exhaled. "Last I remember, I was making my way to my quarters. Not much helpful I know but that is all I can recollect." He took in their concerned eyes. "I am really sorry if I caused you all to worry. I am really good at that, aren't I?"

"Nonsense" Hermione waved dismissively. "Your well-being is our utmost concern." Ron and Ginny nodded in agreement. The nurse was just being a silent spectator.

Harry turned to the nurse and enquired. "Can I leave?"

She didn't respond. She moved her wand over Harry again, muttering incomprehensible charms, trying to deduce whether Harry was fit enough to leave. After a long time, for Harry at least, the nurse stepped back and reluctantly said, "Physically you seem okay, but mentally I am not so sure..." She left her statement hanging in the air. In other words, she found Harry a little soft in the head.

"I was just kidding earlier; that doesn't mean I have gone crazy or something." Harry gingerly got off the bed and balanced himself on his feet. "I am leaving Madam Pompfrey." He said with finality and walked towards the door with strong steps.

***B***

Harry was making his way to the quarters while the other three were trailing him, trying to catch up to Harry's furious pace. The corridors were dimly lit, the setting sun increasing the darkness. He had been out since last night and had missed a full day of classes. What explanation were the others given for his absence? He also hoped Lance wasn't worried about him.

He slowed down as he neared the entrance, looking over his shoulder. There was no way he could avoid there questions. Earlier, Harry had surprised himself with his rather unorthodox plan, which he had managed to carry out rather spectacularly. The only thing he overlooked was the fact that the memory charms could be detected. It played out nicely however, helping him escape suspicion. Now he just needed to think on how to tackle the flurry of questions his friends had in store for him.

He waited at the entrance for his friends to catch up and then entered his quarters. He took a seat closest to the fireplace, allowing the flames to throw shadows on his face.

Ron, Hermione and Ginny took seats near him, but remained silent. They didn't know how to pose their questions or for the matter, what questions to ask. They could tell that there was more to Harry's story than what met the eye.

As usual, Hermione began. "I found something that could explain what happened earlier in the DADA class." This was unexpected. Harry had readied himself to face a different line of questioning.

Hermione eyes were sharp, examining Harry's every expression and body language. However, she only received a look of confusion. "What happened in the class? I... I can't seem to remember..." He clutched his head as if trying to hold in the pain caused due to the stress he was putting on his mind. He looked up again to find Hermione's eyes soften a bit, taking on a guilty look. "My thoughts are too muddled. My head feels rather heavy at the moment."

"You should have stayed back at the infirmary." Hermione chided him.

"I would rather be with you guys than mull over my sorry state all alone." That shut Hermione up.

"What happened in your DADA class?" Ginny asked. It seemed she had not been told about the little incident that happened, which by the way, Harry remembered perfectly.

Ron, who had been silent up till now, spoke up. "Hermione and me..." Hermione sniffed in disapproval. Ron just rolled his eyes but corrected himself. "Hermione and I were paired and were duelling against Professor Hart when one of my cutting hexes seeped through his defences, cutting the amulet that he usually wears."

To Ron's chagrin, Hermione took over the exciting part. "As soon as the amulet left his neck, the air started to sizzle with raw power. The professor's stunner went through my strong shield as if it was butter and took out Ron. Then he quickly returned the locket to his neck and the air suddenly turned lighter and breathable. However, I did manage to get a good glimpse of the amulet." She stopped as a flash or recognition went past Harry's eyes.

"I remember..." He whispered and gave a small nod for Hermione to continue. Ten out of ten for the performance, Harry awarded himself. A small part of his mind was repulsed by his deception but that feeling was buried beneath the sense of his achievement.

"I looked in the library and what I found surprised me." She gave an all too familiar pause to give effect to her findings. "That amulet is actually a magical suppressor. It absorbs magical aura and reduces ones magical abilities."

There was a pin drop silence at that announcement. What did this all mean? A mountain of questions weighed on their minds. How could Professor Hart be so powerful? Why was a magical suppressor required? Why did such a powerful person work as an ordinary clerk at the Ministry? What was his purpose here in Hogwarts? Just teaching didn't seem enough. Who he really was and on whose side he was on? Also, why did he look so familiar?

"Have you managed to remember what happened to you?" Hermione changed the subject rather abruptly.

Harry shook his head. "No." He turned his towards the fire and closed his eyes. Comfortable warmth hugged his body and he was asleep before he knew it. He was not acting this time.

***B***

A muffled voice called him from far away. The voice repeated, growing louder as if approaching him.

A warm hand on Harry's arm caused him to open his eyes slowly. He found a smiling face of Susan looking down at him. He found himself sleeping full stretch on the sofa.

A yawn escaped him and he sat up on the sofa. Susan took a step back and watched his unsteady rise. The morning sun light had lit the office brightly causing Harry to squint.

"Morning Head Girl." Harry's voice cracked slightly. His throat was rather dry. "It seems I have made the office my bedroom. Nice wakeup call though."

Susan smiled pleasantly, with a red tinge to her cheeks. "You looked very peaceful in your sleep. Like an innocent child. I would have woken you up last night itself but couldn't find it in myself to do it. You must be rather tired and shaken by your accident." She said with concern, but the hunger for information was absent within those eyes. The thing he was grateful for. Two people breathing down his neck was enough.

"Yeah... But I'm feeling much better now." Harry nodded reassuringly.

"Sleeping for a whole day didn't have anything to do with it, right?" Susan said with an amused glint to her eyes.

Harry chuckled. "What could you be talking about?" Harry asked innocently but couldn't stop the smile appearing on his face.

Their friendly banter was interrupted by the sound of the main door opening. Harry turned in its direction to find his two best friends rushing in, their eyes searching for their green eyed friend. They walked towards him, completely ignoring Susan.

"I'll be off then, see you at breakfast." Susan said stonily. She was standing much further away from him than before his friends had come in. She walked off without acknowledging Ron and Hermione.

"How are you doing mate?" Ron asked.

"Alright I guess." Before his friends could say anything further, he continued. "Something happened between you lot and Susan?"

Hermione glared at Ron who seemed to be bearing a sheepish smile. "While you were unconscious in the hospital, Susan had come to visit quite a few times to check on you. Ron, thick as he is, had told her that we two could take care of you and her presence was not required; and very rudely at that."

Ron quickly jumped to his own defence. "I was very worried about you and she would have just got in the way. I don't know why she was troubling herself. Unless of course..." He trailed off, giving Harry a teasing look.

Harry looked at him sharply. "If you haven't forgotten, I am a Head Boy. She can't possibly handle the duties all on her own. Considering that, she had a right to be concerned."

"If you say so." Ron said dismissively. This behaviour riled Harry and he had trouble controlling his emotions.

"Ron has a point. She may have a thing for you. I can tell." Hermione said with a knowing look.

"Not you too, Hermione." Harry said exasperatedly. "You can't draw such kind of conclusions if someone just comes and visits you in the infirmary."

"Actually. Not many came." Hermione said grudgingly.

"A big surprise there." Harry said sarcasm. "So who all came?"

"Besides us, Ginny, Neville and Susan." Ron stated, counting on his fingers.

There was someone missing. Luna! Harry had completely forgotten about her and their little mishap in the astronomy tower.

Hermione seemed to have read his mind. "Surprisingly, Luna was missing. She might have been busy with something but she should have at least come once to see how you were doing."

"It's no big deal. Have you seen her around?" Harry asked casually, trying to hide the growing panic from his voice.

They both nodded, though Hermione's face held a curious look. Harry took a sigh of relief. His memory charm might have failed to work. It was his first time of course.

With renewed energy he rose from the sofa. "I'll be back in a few minutes. Just need to freshen up. You can go ahead of me. I will meet you in the great hall." Harry left them without waiting for an acknowledgment.

***B***

As he ate in silence, his eyes sought out Luna. She looked normal enough, at least according to her standards. He found himself breathing more easily.

As he ate his breakfast, his thoughts went back to Cho. The state in which he had left her at St Mungo's didn't look promising. She was now in the hands of the healers. She had to live through it or else there would be another death on his head.

His gloomy thoughts were interrupted by Luna. She had come over to their table and was saying "Hi Ron and Hermione. I just came over to tell you to avoid the treacle tart; it has been infested by Wrackspurts." She said as if that explained her warning. That didn't help Ron, whose mouth was already stuffed with the food in question. Hermione just rolled her eyes.

Luna's eyes moved to Harry who was sitting in between them. Why had she not greeted him?

"And who might you be? Haven't seen you around." Luna inquired dreamily.

Ron choked on his food, a snigger escaping him. Hermione looked questioningly at Luna; she wasn't the type who cracked jokes.

Harry on the other hand had barely managed to stifle a gasp. Sweat dripped along his chin. He was trying his best to maintain his composure. He turned towards Luna and said evenly with a forced smile. "You couldn't have forgotten one of your friends, could you?"

Luna's face took on a dreamy confusion. "You are my friend?"

Hermione stood up from her seat with a shocked look. "Do you know who Harry Potter is?"

"Harry... Potter?" Luna repeated. It was clear that the name didn't ring any bells for her.

If anyone had looked at Harry, they would have realized that something had gone terribly wrong. However, everyone's attention was captured by the forgetful Luna.

"Did she also lose her memory?" Ron asked, turning to Hermione.

"I don't know. She seems to have just forgotten Harry." She said, glancing at Harry. He had successfully managed to hide his horror-struck expression with a mask of concern for Luna. "It can't just be a coincidence." Hermione went on thoughtfully. "I may not be wrong to think that both of your situations are related." _You are rarely wrong_, Harry thought.

She left her seat and moved besides Luna. "We need to take her to Madam Pompfrey as quick as possible. It becomes rather difficult to remove the charm as the time progresses."

"So it can be undone?" Harry asked expectantly with hopeful eyes, in spite of himself. Hermione looked at him suspiciously. He had to say something. "She doesn't have a scar to help her right?" He said with a chuckle. His lame joke didn't get any laughs; only more suspicious looks. _Oh! Great._

They walked in silence, leading the confused Ravenclaw girl but otherwise silent, to the infirmary.

Madam Pompfrey didn't even attempt to hide the groan that left her when she spotted the trio entering.

"Who lost their memory this time?" She commented offhandedly. She was in for a surprise.

"Luna" Hermione stated simply.

The nurse's eye brows nearly touched her hairline. "What do you mean?" She looked sharply at the four students and sniffed as if to smell a prank. Their expressions were stoic and slightly worried, giving an impression of the seriousness of the issue.

The nurse took on a business like tone. "What's wrong with Miss Lovegood? Has she also forgotten everything?"

Ron shook his head. "No. Just Harry."

"Anything that I need to know about?" The nurse directed towards Harry.

Harry took an affronted expression. "What do you mean by that?"

The nurse didn't respond and escorted Luna to the nearest bed. She waived her wand over her with the usual muttering. Then she turned towards them with a grim look which seemed to strengthen their suspicion. Harry didn't count since he knew what happened. He was the person responsible after all. "I can detect a memory charm on her. Luckily it's not been long since it has been casted over her. I can get her back up to speed within a day. It's a good thing that I have the potion just for it." She went to her office and retrieved a silver vial and handed it to Luna. "Drink this every four hours starting from now. You should get most of your memories back by tomorrow." Luna nodded dumbly.

Harry's friends breathed a sigh of relief. Harry however, was more worried that she might even remember who casted the Memory charm. He would just have to be on his guard.

***B***

Charms hadn't been so boring. It didn't have anything to do with Professor Flitwick. He couldn't find anything interesting, his span of concentration greatly shortened. The series of events he had been through taking a toll on him. His usually dull life was moving at a rapid speed. If being dull meant a few battles with Voldemort then that was saying something.

He looked out the window trying to escape his boredom. Oh! Look a bird. And another bird... phoenix. Fawkes! What was it doing around here? Actually, why hadn't it showed up earlier? It had been a few months since he had last since Fawkes. He had completely forgotten about the rare bird he owned.

He watched as the phoenix circled above the Forbidden forest. Why hadn't Fawkes come to meet him yet? Was its purpose only to imbue his wand with its magic? Wasn't he Fawkes' master?

"Mr Potter" Harry looked away from the window and twisted his head to find the source of the voice but he couldn't see anyone. Professor Flitwick didn't seem to be in class. Or so he thought.

Everyone was looking at him, however. Someone cleared his throat and Harry had to strain his neck to see the Professor who was hidden from view behind his desk.

Most of the students sniggered. Others glared at him with satisfied smiles. His friends who were sitting next to him were looking at him apologetically.

"Mr Potter, you need to be attentive while in class. You are a Head Boy and you need to set an example for the other students." Professor Flitwick said in a light tone. His eyes were warm and forgiving.

Harry bowed his head in genuine shame as he stood up from his seat. "I am very sorry for my behaviour. I guess I had lot on my mind. I will accept any kind of detention as you please."

The Professor smiled at Harry. "That won't be necessary. Just pay attention. That is all I ask." Harry nodded and retook his seat as the Professor walked to the front of the class, resuming his lecture. He smirked at those who were still looking at him causing them to return their eyes to the front of the class. Harry discreetly looked out of the window to see whether he could spot Fawkes again. However, it seemed to have disappeared. He resolved to call Fawkes first thing after the today's classes were over.

***B***

Harry wanted to ask the Headmistress whether there was any news on Cho but he restrained himself. He needed to avoid suspicion. He had already been told by Auror White that he would be informed if any information about her whereabouts was obtained. What was taking them so long?

Potions class was nearly over and Harry was planning a trip to the Astronomy tower to call on Fawkes.

However, his plans were dashed when he found Auror White standing outside, waiting for someone with a grim expression. That someone was Harry Potter and his expression was giving Harry a sick feeling in his stomach.

Ron and Hermione stood behind him in silence; they had a fair idea what this could be about. The other students sent them odd looks as they passed the trio which was standing next to the Head Auror.

The Auror sent a cursory glance at Harry's company and looked back at Harry who just nodded. He turned around and marched towards the Headmistress' office, the trio trailing him.

The four entered the otherwise empty office if not counting the Headmistress, who was seated on her chair waiting for their arrival. She raised an eyebrow at Ron and Hermione but didn't say anything. Auror White remained standing as they took their seats.

The Headmistress began without preamble. "We have found Miss Chang."

Harry did his best to mimic the surprise his friends expressed. He was more interested in how she was. "Is she alright?" Harry asked with worried eyes.

The Headmistress averted her gaze and stated. "She is alive."

The underlying meaning in that reply didn't go amiss by the three students.

"Where is she now? At St Mungo's?" Hermione inquired. The Headmistress nodded but didn't clarify. "When did you find about her?"

A hint of irritation crept into the Headmistress' demeanour, but Auror White took over responding calmly. "She was deposited to St Mungo's two days ago. It was only after one of the Aurors who managed to identify her that we came to know of her whereabouts."

Hermione quickly caught on the mention of another person's involvement. "Who was he that left her at St Mungo's? Where did he find her?" Hermione persisted. Harry noticed the Headmistress throwing a sharp glance at the Head Auror, but he looked unperturbed.

"We don't know about his identity. Those who saw him couldn't see him properly and he left as soon as he had transferred her into their care." Harry had _left_ by disapparition, but he was glad that little detail was left out. The lesser Hermione knew the better.

Harry turned to look at Hermione who was in deep thought, her eyes focused and ears twitching. That was not a good sign. At least for him that is.

Some distraction was needed. He turned to the Headmistress and asked. "Has she awakened yet?"

The Headmistress' gaze wavered slightly. It looked as if she was trying to come up with a reply which might ease their concerns but after a moment she thought better of it. "Not yet. Miss Chang seems to be stuck in a comatose state even after the Healers' best efforts to revive her." She paused before saying "She has been kept alive on life support charms."

"I want to see her." Harry announced with finality. "She is in this state because of me."

Before either of the elder people could object, Hermione spoke up. "I am equally responsible. I dragged her into the DA and hence making her a target."

Ron was also going to say something but was interrupted by the loud voice of the Headmistress. "No one is going anywhere." She said sharply, peering at them from her glasses. It didn't have the desired effect on any of the three students.

Harry said quietly, but loud enough for everyone to hear. "I want to see her. What if something happens and..." He trailed off, his voice breaking up.

The Headmistress' expression softened slightly but not enough to change her decision.

"I can arrange for a short and safe trip to the hospital, with your permission that is." Auror White suggested, looking at the Headmistress. She glanced sharply at the Auror who seemed to have challenged her authority. Anyone else would have quivered under the glare but the Auror seemed unaffected.

"I don't see why their presence is required at the hospital. It's not as if she will wake up, would she?" Only if she knew...

"It would be good for Ms Chang to have someone she knows nearby. Her family is in China and we have been unable to get in touch with them yet." The Auror defended his suggestion. The others nodded fervently in support and the Headmistress looked slightly overwhelmed by the majority vote against her. After a bout of a staring match, her shoulder slumped slightly in defeat and gave a small nod to the Auror saying "You must escort them as well. These students have a knack of attracting unwanted attention." She said looking over the trio who held sheepish smiles over their faces.

The Auror nodded reassuringly. He was confident that nothing could go wrong while he was in charge. Nothing ever had. However, he would soon realize how misplaced his confidence was.

***B***

The trio found themselves in St Mungo's, making their way to the critical ward, escorted by six Aurors, two trailing them discreetly in plain clothes. They just got a passing glance from the other patients and healers before going about their usual rush.

They had fifteen minutes, as had been told by Auror White. Before they knew it, they found themselves entering a room where their friend was asleep, to put it mildly that is.

Hermione and Ron couldn't hold back the gasp that left them when they spotted the person in question on the white bed. She looked dead; only the slow rise and fall of chest telling otherwise.

It looked as if all the life has been sucked out of her body, barely managing to hold onto the last tendrils of life.

She was hooked on to some machines which seemed to be a cross between muggle and magical. They hummed around Cho, chanting their melody to wake her up.

Thin rings were around Cho's wrist and her forehead, glowing an ominous red. It didn't take a healer to see what that colour indicated. A nurse sat at one side, a pad in her hand, watching them with interest. Her bored eyes made Harry angry for some unknown reason.

They slowly approached her bed, as if trying not to wake her up. That didn't make sense since they wanted her to regain consciousness.

The Aurors stood at the door with lazed expression, murmuring with each other. Harry had a good idea what they were complaining about. Being a guard to a bunch of students was beneath their job requirement.

Harry's thoughts went back to Cho. Any sign of life was absent from her frail body. The small blip in one of the machines was the only indication that justified her existence in the living. Her face was deathly pale, her cheekbones too pronounced. The white gown she was in gave an impression that she was lying on her death bed. Harry shook his head as if trying to get rid of the forbidden thoughts.

He looked at his friends who were looking at him with an undecided look. They had come here to see her but didn't know what to do next. What did people usually do when visiting someone in a hospital? Harry had no idea. His only experience was when Mr Weasley was admitted during his fifth year.

There was nothing that could be done to help her. It looked as if seeing her in this horrible state made matters worse. The pale faces of friends were a good indication of that. They must have never seen someone fighting death.

Harry's eyes found Cho again. He wanted to apologize, to tell her how sorry he was. He had dragged her into this unknowingly and she was paying the price for no fault of her own.

Tired of standing still, Harry sat near the foot of the bed. He clutched her cold hand with his and whispered "Cho..."

If he was expecting something to happen, then he was slightly disappointed.

However, as he made to release the grip, her hand tightened around his fingers. Harry's eyes shot up and he could see the rings seemed to lose the red tinge, replaced by a yellow shade.

Her grip, though weak was a good sign, at least to the nurse who shot from her chair with an astonished look and raced out the door, roughly pushing the disgruntled Aurors out of the way.

"What happened?" Ron inquired, unable to comprehend the sudden change in activity in the otherwise dull room.

"She is gaining conscious." Hermione stated, gesturing to the ring. "Those indicate brain activity..." She trailer off as the colour of the rings turned a light share of green. "It seems you have a magical touch, Harry." Hermione said with surprise.

Harry was too relieved to notice her observant eyes on him. He just kept holding on to her hand, as if trying to pull her into the world of living. His eyes were watching her face to see if there was any sign of consciousness.

And as if on cue, Cho's eyelids moved ever so slightly but that little movement didn't escape his watchful gaze.

"She is waking up!" Harry exhaled in relief. His efforts didn't go to waste after all. He had at least managed to save a life. Harry felt his emotions getting the better of him. He had been controlling them for such a long time that this new feeling felt alien to him. He didn't care now. His eyes stung but it seemed that his tear ducts had dried up.

The eyelids fluttered and lifted slowly, squinting at the bright light that assaulted her eyes.

Harry and his friends stood frozen, watching, as Cho slowly regained consciousness. Her eyes were trying to focus, fidgeting within her eye sockets. Her eyes landed on Harry and the sudden stillness that took over her gaze made Harry uncomfortable, but he couldn't look away from her eyes. There was a hidden knowing look behind them. Harry felt a weak squeeze on his hand a small smile creased her pale face. It seemed as if to her no one existed in the room besides Harry.

Harry glanced at his friends to see what their reactions were. Ron looked dumbstruck which wasn't a surprise. Hermione was looking enquiringly at Harry, which wasn't a surprise either.

Harry readied himself as Hermione opened her mouth to grill him when suddenly they heard a commotion outside the door.

One of the Aurors nodded at the other two and went out while the remaining drew out their wands. "Nothing to worry about." One of them said in a manner one speaks to scared children. The noise outside grew louder and they could make out shouts and screams coming from outside the room.

Harry turned to look at Cho who seemed oblivious to the pending danger hanging over all of them. Her eyes were fixed on him with the smile stuck on her face. Harry hoped she hadn't gone insane after enduring so much torture.

He turned back to face the door, drawing out his wand and walking in between the door and the bed. His other able bodied friends followed suite. The remaining two Aurors had rushed out; their bored eyes hungry for some action. They seemed to have forgotten their job to protect them.

A few loud guttural screams followed and all went silent. There was burst and the light outside the room went out.

His two friends moved closer to him, unable to contain the nervous shaking that took control of their bodies. Fear of death could do such things to people.

Not Harry though. He didn't fear it; he challenged it. He stood stock still, his sharp eyes trying to perceive any movement in the gap between the doors. His wand itched in his hand, hungry to unleash its wrath on anything that moved.

"Harry..." a voice whispered from behind them which they heard only due to the heavy silence in the air.

Harry risked a glance at Cho, whose lips quivered in weakness as she continued. "Thank you..."

Harry nodded and smiled.

"Get down!" Ron screamed, dragging Harry along with him. Thanks to Ron's quick reflexes, Harry barely managed to avoid the green light which came from the darkness behind the doors. The three returned fire through the gap, a low groan indicating that at least one of the spells hit its mark.

Harry suddenly became aware of something... He was standing in between the bed and the door, so if he dodged the killing curse then...

Harry shot out of his position and turned to look at Cho. She seemed the same. Her eyes were still on him, the smile was still there. There was only one little difference. That difference meant a lot actually. Her chest was unmoving. She was dead; killed by the curse that was meant for him.


	21. True Pain

A/N: And here is another chapter. My story as of yet has managed to achieve a rather lukewarm response. I would appreciate it if my readers could leave a review to just let me know whether I am doing good and where I am lacking.

Imagine your reviews as coal and my updating speed as a steam engine. So the more you review, the faster I update. Sounds like a deal to me. So Review!

P.S: If anyone found my storyline interesting and wants to beta my fic then please PM me. I would be glad for any assistance I get.

* * *

True Pain

* * *

The whole universe was plotting against him; doing its best to make him suffer, to torture his mind. But for how long? How long could he remain sane?

He wanted to scream, to yell at the top of his voice but no voice escaped his throat. A strange numbness and detachment enveloped him, making him blind and deaf momentarily.

He could neither hear nor see Ron's and Hermione's urgent whispering and shaking. He couldn't hear their sobs and the gasps. He was lost in the clutches of the terrible pain that was crushing his mind and soul.

His friends shared a look and nodded at each other. They were appalled by the horrifying tragedy playing in front of them but they needed to be strong. They would need to take over the responsibility of protecting themselves.

Hermione magically closed the door and moved a cupboard in from of it. They had to literally drag Harry to a corner and then stood poised in a battle stance, their wands pointed at the doorway.

There was a crashing sound as something hit the door but luckily the door stayed put. They heard some voices coming from outside, presumably the death eaters. From the number of different voices, Hermione figured there were at least five death eaters; which was not a good sign.

"I am sure the Aurors will come soon." Ron said nervously, trying to reassure Hermione but failing miserably. It seemed he needed reassurance himself.

Suddenly the lights in the room went out and a small gasp left Hermione.

"Are you alright?"

"I-" Hermione's voice was interrupted by loud shouts and howls of pain. A few crashes and then suddenly everything fell silent. It was all over within a few seconds.

"What was that?" Ron asked with growing fear.

"I don't know..." She trailed off and quickly turned around. Her wand light fell on the unmoving figure of Harry who was staring back with haunted eyes at her. "You okay?"

Harry didn't respond and turned to look at the body in the bed. Death was so peaceful. At least that's how Cho looked. She died smiling, her last words still ringing in his ears.

"Harry...?" Hermione tried again.

"I am fine." His hollow voice was telling otherwise but Hermione didn't press. At least he had responded.

It was deathly quiet outside. Ron and Hermione looked at each other nervously. "What's going on outside?" Ron whispered.

Before Hermione could respond, they heard a voice calling from outside. "Mr Potter, Miss Hermione, Mr Weasley. Are you in there?" The voice was familiar. There was an undercurrent of pain in the voice as well.

"Auror White?" Hermione replied warily. It could be a trap to lure them out.

"Yes, it's me." Auror White responded.

Hermione didn't move. An arm on Ron also stopped him from moving.

Hermione was thinking furiously. Why did the Head Auror support them against the Headmistress? How did the death eaters know where to find them? Where had the Head Auror been when their life was in peril? How did he survive the attack? Moreover, was the person calling out to them from outside actually Auror White?

"I am coming in." Auror White informed them as he tried to push at the door.

"Stop!" Hermione ordered forcefully while Ron looked at her with confusion. "When the school began, where was the intruder spotted?"

"Near astronomy tower of course." Came the prompt reply.

Hermione wasn't done however. This only proved that he was Auror White; not that he was innocent. "Where were you when we were attacked?"

Before there could come a response, someone else called out. "Hermione, is that you?"

"Tonks?"

"Yours truly." There was a chuckle. "You can come out now. We got the situation under control. Did you do all this?"

They heard a muffled 'No' from Auror White.

Hermione frowned. What did she mean by _all this_?

Before they both could move, Harry stepped forward from behind them and moved the cupboard out of the way. He opened the door for Tonks to step in followed by a bloodied Auror White. A deep gash in his cheek and a few cuts here and there gave him a rather disheveled look.

"You three alri-" Tonks stopped mid-sentence as she saw the body on the bed. Her eyes hardened and turned to Harry who just gave her an imperceptible nod to confirm her death.

Harry felt disconnected, unfeeling of the emotions around him. Tonks eyes flashed with concern but left him alone. Her priority now was to get them back to Hogwarts safe and sound.

She turned around and said, "Let us go. Cho's parents have been contacted. They should be here any moment to take over from here." As she reached the door she half turned and looked grimly at them. "I would advise you not to look around too much if you can't stand blood. It's a bloodbath outside."

Ron and Hermione paled slightly but Harry remained unaffected. He had this dreamy look on him that worried his friends.

It seemed that when one is warned against doing something, they can't prevent themselves from doing it.

Hermione shrieked in horror, the gruesome scene too much for her. The lights were back on and all the gory details were up for display. Ron looked rather pale and nauseous. It was rather hard not to look at the ghastly sight outside the door, unless the eyes were closed.

Out of all the casualties, the Aurors seemed to have just been scratched in comparison to what happened to the death eaters. They were in a bloodied mess of broken bones, lying in pools of blood. They look dead.

"They all are still alive. One of us has been killed though." One of the Aurors from the backup squad reported. "The question is who did this to them?"

"Who indeed." Tonks wondered aloud, her distasteful eyes examining the massacre of sorts. It was a mystery to all. Whoever had done this to the death eaters had done so in pure rage and hatred. _But who?_

Harry stared at the floor, feeling empty. _They deserved it._ He kept repeating that in his mind.

It was good that they were in a hospital. The Healers who were first to their location, quickly went to work, carting away the injured after making sure no one was in danger.

The trio observed from a safe distance, their eyes trying to avoid the gory details. Harry just looked spaced out, staring in the other direction. Ron and Hermione shared a concerned look. They were greatly affected themselves but Harry seemed deeply scarred. The question was, could he recover from such a shock? Will he ever be the same?

***B***

"Have we found the missing nurse yet?" Moody inquired from the head of the table, massaging his head. Oh how he wanted to retire. His sense of duty was the only thing standing in his way.

"Not yet." An Auror confirmed who was also a part of the Order.

Another Order meeting was in progress but the mood was extremely different when compared to the previous one. Everyone had come willingly, most even inquired when it would be held. The coordinated attack on St Mungo's by the death eaters was rather fresh in their minds. They wanted facts; their trust in newspapers had vanished a long ago. Everyone had already been briefed in detail what had transpired. There were so many questions after that, Moody had to bring out his wand to restore the peace in the room.

"Am I wrong to assume that the nurse had a role in the attack?" One of the intellectuals in the group inquired.

Moody snorted, his magical eye hovering menacingly over the person who spoke. "Assumptions will get us nowhere. We know that that their target was none other than Harry Potter. We know that someone informed about Potter's presence at St Mungo's to the death eaters. We know that one Auror died in the melee while the rest of them survived with mild injuries. We know that the six death eaters were gravely injured, four of them fighting for their lives as we speak. We know all this for a fact and anything beyond it would be just speculation. I am sure you have loads of questions," His magical eye swept over the Order members, taking in their questioning eyes. "I would request you go about it in an orderly fashion." He chastised them all as if he was speaking to children.

Minerva sniffed in disapproval from his side and a chuckle came from his other side from Tonks. Rest of them were slightly miffed at Moody's behaviour towards them. This brought a huge crooked smile on his face, stretching his scarred skin in the most grotesque way. Most of them flinched after looking at his face. _Now, wasn't that a sight to remember?_ Moody thought with bemusement, his smile widening to its limits, threatening to tear through his face any minute.

"Who do we consider a suspect at the moment, besides the nurse?" One of them spoke up, seeing the silence as his chance to contribute to the discussion.

"The St Mungo's staff, the patients, the Aurors involved and..." He turned to his left, "Minerva."

Most of them gasped, some even muttered 'Paranoid' loud enough for Moody to hear. Minerva just looked at him with a raised eyebrow, unperturbed by the underlying allegation in that statement. She had known Moody for a long time and just like Tonks, knew how he worked.

"I was against their going to St Mungo's from the start itself. It was only after the assurances of Auror White did I relent. You can question the Head Auror if you want." She defended herself tonelessly.

"That won't be necessary. So it was not Minerva." He said to the assembled members. There were lots of pairs of eyes that rolled. "That does shorten our list, doesn't it?" They shook their heads in defeat. It wasn't for any reason that he was known as Mad Eye Moody. "However, the staff and the patients can be eliminated from the list seeing that the attack was too well planned and their chance sighting of Potter could not have led to such an assault. And hence we are left with the nurse and the Aurors."

"You have no right to doubt an Auror's loyalty!" The Auror who had spoken earlier exclaimed in defense.

"Don't be naive. Loyalty can be morphed in a blink of an eye. Your best friend might poke a wand in your back. I have experienced it all my life, so don't try and talk with me about loyalty."

The heavy truth squashed any further denials from the Aurors present at the meeting.

"What about the injured death eaters? Do we have a theory on who did that to them?" The same intellectual spoke up.

"Theories are endless but based on the brutal condition they were left in, I have my suspicions." Moody replied with a contemplating look. "We know for a fact that it wasn't the Aurors. The rest of people in St Mungo's present at the scene are incapable of such bloodshed. From the accounts we have received, the death eaters had been downed in mere seconds and in total darkness. That is no easy feat. However, no outsiders were noticed when the back up squad arrived. However, I am inclined to think that it _was_ an outsider and I _know_ who it could be." Moody didn't need to elaborate. Everyone knew where his finger was pointing to.

After an uncomfortable silence, Bill voiced his question which later everyone realized, was the most important one. "Why is You-Know-Who so obsessed with getting rid of Harry? I mean alright, Harry was the reason behind his downfall. But why go to so much effort just to get to him? What will he gain from taking out such a young and innocent boy?"

There was a pause before Moody answered. "That my friends is a mystery to everyone but You-Know-Who himself. We just need to ask him. Any volunteers?" He surveyed the crowd but none raised their hand. "I thought so."

***B***

Harry drifted through time, the happenings around him barely registering on his numbed mind.

The Headmistress had told everyone about the demise of the ex-student of Hogwarts during dinner and observed a minute of silence in respect.

Harry went through the proceedings like a zombie, a lost look on his face which almost matched Luna's, except the smile.

His friends were greatly affected as well. They had never seen someone die. However, the state their friend was in disturbed them even more. They had overcome their own horrors to be beside Harry.

If they thought Harry didn't realize their presence, they were mistaken. No matter how his friends were, they were still at his side, supporting him and trying to shoulder the burden. Only if they knew what was weighing him down. There were many instances where Harry was on the verge of disclosing everything to his friends. He was choking, unable to breath, unable to bear the task that was crushing the life out of him.

The trio was sitting in the prefects meeting room. The warmth of the fireplace was unable to remove the cold silence that hung over them.

Harry was not looking at either of them, finding the silence more comfortable. He may have managed a respectable control over his emotions but was still a novice in expressing them when required.

"Harry..." Ron began, but didn't know what to say. He was not too good at this kind of stuff. Harry's unreadable eyes moves to Ron for a moment then went back to its original position. Ron looked helpless at Hermione.

"Harry you need to talk about how you are feeling. You don't want to make a mistake by bottling up your emotions." Hermione nodded with a knowing look.

Harry didn't move. It looked as if he had not heard her but before Hermione could say anything more, Harry finally turned to her. No words were required to relay what he was going through. The unconcealed pain and broken features visible on his face were enough for Hermione and Ron who had paled slightly. They had never seen their green eyed friend in such a weak state. He had always been strong and defiant. But even the strong have moments of weakness.

"You are taking this too hard on yourself." Hermione tried to console him. "It is not your fault. If anyone is to blame, it is Voldemort and his death eaters." Ron winced slightly but Hermione ignored him. "You do understand what I am trying to say?"

He understood perfectly. But still a part of his mind told him that he could have saved her. Like everyone else that he failed to save. Countless scenarios played in his mind. His mind wasn't letting him wash off his hands that happened around him. He felt responsible, his inaction costing everyone near him dearly.

Hermione waited patiently for Harry's response but he kept his silence.

Harry got up suddenly. "I need... I need time to think. Thank you..." He left without waiting for an acknowledgement.

***B***

"I was somewhat worried when you didn't show up two days in a row." Lance was sitting on his chair, finding it too strenuous to stand. "However, I knew that you needed time to heal from the deep mental scars." He wasn't even sure whether the distraught person sitting in front of him was listening or not. Harry was very silent, his emotionless face giving nothing away.

"When I had been in the army the war was at its peak." Lance had a faraway look. "Most of my fellow men were slaughtered around me. Some of them died in my arms. The way I felt..." Lance closed his eyes, even that distant memory causing him pain "My gun had killed many. My soul was smeared by the blood of my victims. There came a stage when I started to enjoy it, relishing in my superior skills. Skills to kill. But I knew that was just a way of deceiving myself, to hide the pain from myself. I knew it had to be done; I didn't have the luxury of another way out. I pushed on with a cold heart, waiting for the war to get over. However, no end was in sight but I persevered, trying not to count the number of soldiers I killed or remember who died by my side. When I finally made it through, it was the best feeling I ever experienced. The world was safer and I had played a role in it. I had survived and I was provided an opportunity to start over, begin from a new page. Just the thing I did." Lance knew Harry was listening, even though there was no indication of that. "I don't regret my actions. I know I am not a bad person. Neither are you. You just need to accept that and then your current situation would become much easier."

Harry scoffed at that but didn't say anything. Lance smiled. He was listening after all. There was no point talking to a wall after all.

Lance observed Harry, the boy who had suffered so much that not even a strong adult could have handled the pain. He was still sane which surprised him. He knew that if he had been in Harry's place, he would have buckled under the pain a long time ago. Harry was strong, very strong; only if he himself could realize that.

"I..." Harry whispered, his voice cracking up. He tried again. "I feel like I am stuck in a terrible nightmare, my eyes refusing to open. The crushing darkness around my soul is suffocating the life out of me. I don't know... I can't bear it any more. Fate is playing a very cruel game with me. I want to run away, to disappear but I cannot. I am the damned saviour. I always ask myself that why the prophecy chose me. What did I do wrong to be given such a cruel destiny? What if it was someone else? I would not have been an orphan; I would have had a normal life, troubled with the most menial of things. It... it seems I was cursed even before I was born. And you know what? I have this really bad feeling that my nightmare has just begun. I feel like I have just seen the tip of the iceberg of the pain that awaits me. I look around and find the other people happy and content with their lives. I envy them. All of them..." Harry was ranting but Lance listened attentively. He knew that Harry needed to vent out all his distress and frustration to ease his aching soul.

When Harry was out of breath, Lance took over the one sided conversation. "I know what you need; a way to heal yourself." Harry looked at him with raised eyebrows. "Today, you will not be doing any training."

"I am alright. I can manage." Harry interrupted, his current state telling otherwise.

Lance didn't argue; his mind was already made up. "Follow me." Thus began a slow journey to the training room. Lance was left breathless. Harry did try to support him, but Lance's pride came in the way.

Finally, when Lance was seated and had got a hold of his breathing, he said "In your current state you would do more harm than good if you responded to an alert. Your survival is of the utmost importance." Lance paused after seeing Harry flinch. "That came out wrong but that's the truth, bluntly put. You do know that, right?" Harry acknowledged with a reluctant nod. "You need to work on your mind. It's imperative that you realize that you are the best bet our side has and none of your efforts will go in vain. Try to concentrate on the end result rather than the means in which you are going to attain it. Let me tell you that it is going to get much worse. Many will die; some you may know, some you won't. Some might die at your hand and some will die even after your best efforts to save them. It's a god damn war and there is no such thing as being safe. Everyone is in mortal danger, only the false sense of normalcy is keeping them away from that realization. Voldemort is playing his cards close to his chest, making use of the ignorant ones. However, it is you who stands in his way. Physically and magically you are more powerful than an average boy your age but mentally..." He trailed off before continuing "It is not that your mind is weak. The thing is, it has suffered a lot. Too much for a normal person to bear. I am not saying you are abnormal or something; you are just extraordinary. Your heart is pure-"

Harry snorted. "I have killed. I am far from pure. Don't try to overlook what I have done."

"You did what you had to protect others. You may think that you could have avoided it but it happened and there is no turning back. You need to understand that you are not bad. It is the intention behind your actions that define you. Consider the soldiers in the war. Are they all bad? No, they fight to protect their country. They risk their lives and most even die. You are doing the same thing. You risk your life each time you go against the death eaters but you don't twice. What does that tell you? You are willing to sacrifice yourselves for the sake of everyone else. Even an extremely good person may not be able to do it." Harry's pensive eyes still seemed to be clouded with doubt. Lance sighed. There were things that Harry would have to be figure out by himself. "Right, so what you are going to do today is meditate. Close you eyes." Harry obediently did it. "Now, imagine a dementor trying to suck away all your happiness. You must counter it by filling your mind with more happy thoughts. Happy thoughts will attract more happy thoughts and soon your mind will be at peace and the dementor will disappear."

Initially, Harry was sceptical whether he had any happy thoughts at all. But as he went through his mind he found many. And miraculously, his head seemed to clear a bit and he felt a smile on his face.

***B***

He was still smiling when he apparated back to Hogwarts. Lance had told him to think about such memories whenever he felt down. He ran a couple of laps around the lake, feeling strangely invigorated.

Just as he had finished his run, Fawkes appeared out of nowhere onto his shoulder. Harry was momentarily dazed by the warmth and sudden brightness that surrounded him. Fawkes sang its song which struck a chord in Harry's heart causing him to cry soundlessly. It seemed that the tear ducts had opened and the water was rushing out in full force. He didn't know why he was crying but he couldn't stop. They were tears of overwhelming happiness.

It was good that no one could spot him in his current state as he was behind trees that blocked the view from the castle. It was as if his body was getting cleansed. A very foreign sense of peace settled over him and Harry just closed his eyes, wishing that it would never end.

Of course, all good things come to an end and Fawkes vanished the same way in which he had appeared. However, the lingering effects of its presence still hung over him.

Harry momentarily forgot all he had been through and made his way to the castle. On his way up to his quarters he ran into Ginny.

"Where were you? I just came from your quarters but you didn't respond to my knocking on your door. I figured that you were still asleep. And here you are, running around the castle." Ginny said with a small smile, after noticing the sweat drenched shirt that Harry wore. She had her broomstick on her shoulder.

"Ain't I in demand? Where is the rest of the search party?" Harry flashed his teeth in a wide grin. Ginny's jaw dropped open and her eyes went wide. She didn't expect him to be back to normal. It was only yesterday that he was walking like an inferi. What could have brought this change? "Cat got your tongue?" He added with a teasing smile.

"Well... I... I just came over to ask you if you mind flying around the Quidditch pitch. It would be a nice change for you. But it seems you are alright. I guess I'll-"

"Brilliant!" Harry exclaimed. "Just the thing I need. Wait here and let me get my Firebolt." And he raced away leaving behind a stunned red head.

***B***

Half an hour later, Harry and Ginny were walking back to the changing room with wide smiles on their faces. No words were exchanged when they flew, all their interaction was done through their broomstick and the way they flew. They chased each other, challenged each other with aerial tricks and what not. They chuckled, they laughed and shouted. Harry felt grateful for her company. It was almost like the last two-three days were just a bad dream and he had finally woken up.

"Thank you." Harry said to her but was looking straight ahead.

"It's no big deal. I had my share of fun. Especially after beating you at all the tricks." Ginny teased with amusement.

"You wish, Weasley. Now don't be sore loser and admit your defeat at the hands of the almighty Harry Potter." Harry retorted.

"You are so full of yourself." Ginny punched him playfully on his arm.

Harry winced. "I'm hurt. Badly at that. I hope Madam Pompfrey can save my arm."

Ginny just rolled her eyes. "You will live."

"I-" Harry stopped when he spotted Dean, standing at the entrance of the changing room, looking at them with anger. He left without a word. "I..." He didn't know what to say. He had unknowingly caused trouble for Ginny. They being together and laughing didn't seem a nice picture for Dean.

"It's alright. I can handle him. You go ahead to the great hall. I will catch up soon." Saying which, she went after Dean.

Harry walked back to his quarters to leave his broom and then had a nice hot bath. After feeling refreshed and smelling of the sweet scent of the aromatic soap he used, he left for the great hall. He initially planned to go to the Gryffindor common room but thought against it. He didn't want his good mood to be spoiled by the nasty comments that were sure to be passed on him.

Hermione was already there at the table reading the Daily Prophet. Most of the few others who had arrived were doing the same thing, whispering furiously among themselves. What was it all about?

Before Harry could ask, Hermione exclaimed worriedly. "Terrible news Harry" She pushed the newspaper towards him, turning it around.

The few headlines that he read gave him a good picture of what had happened. _'Forty suspected death eaters released due to lack of evidence', 'Auror Department under scrutiny', 'The disappearing act of the wand makers', 'Azkaban vacated!'_ He didn't read beyond the headlines since he knew Hermione was going to tell him anyway. He was not wrong.

"All the arrests that were made recently seemed to have gone in vain. The Aurors are being blamed for making false arrests to show their progress. Their actions seemed to have been ridiculed all over the papers. I for one believe that they were actually death eaters." Hermione said dejectedly.

"It says over here that they were released due to lack of evidence. Isn't the dark mark on their arm proof enough?" Harry asked with confusion.

"That is the problem. The marks on their arm seemed to have vanished as if they were never there to begin with."

"It is not possible to hide a dark mark. Everyone knows that."

"That's true but believe me there were no marks on their arms. Page 10 even has pictures of their clean arms. I don't know how they managed that." Hermione was in deep thought.

Harry on the other hand was angry. He was certain that at least half of them were caught by him and they were certainly death eaters. "Why didn't they use Veritaserum? That should have proved their guilt."

"The truth serum cannot be administered without sufficient proof or any witnesses to support the charges. The testimony of the Aurors doesn't count."

"That is certainly a twisted judicial system."

"I know." Hermione agreed. "What surprises me more is the disappearance of almost all wand makers, including Ollivander, throughout the entire country. This seemed to happen just after the death eaters were released. I don't know how these two events are connected."

Harry stiffened slightly. He knew. He had broken their wands and if there are no wands they could use, then they would be useless to Voldemort. Who was behind their disappearance? Was it really what he was thinking or were they in grave danger and there was a deep hidden motive behind all this?

"Harry, you okay?" Hermione said after looking at him for the first time. She had been so immersed in the news that she had forgotten to notice how Harry was feeling.

"I am fine." He said smiling reassuringly at Hermione. "I was just wondering what could be the reason behind their vanishing act."

Hermione studied Harry curiously. He looked better than how he looked for the last few days. Hermione sighed in relief. "I see."

"What's this about Azkaban?" Harry pointed to the article that filled the bottom of the page.

"It seems that without the Dementors to guard the prisoners, Azkaban was deemed no longer secure. Rumours have been flying around that a prison location has been identified and all the prisoners have been moved their. But this is all speculation by the newspaper and you already know how reliable Daily Prophet is, right?"

Harry scrunched his nose in distaste, an indication of agreement. He had been targeted loads of times by that paper; almost everything written about him was false.

"So what's new?" Ron sat next to Harry, as Harry passed the paper to the red head.

Hermione repeated her explanations to Ron followed by his loud exclamations. Harry's thought drifted away from the pair. He noticed Ginny and Dean walking together towards the Gryffindor table, no sign of animosity between them. He quickly looked away trying not to stare. He was grateful that there wasn't any lasting damage on their relationship. Or was he?

"Harry?"

"Yeah?" Harry looked enquiringly at Hermione.

"I had spoken with the Headmistress about my findings about Professor Hart."

"And?" Ron prompted.

"She just waived my worries aside. She told me that she knew everything about Professor Hart. As per her explanation, Professor Hart found safety within the walls of his office more suitable as compared to the action in the field. The missing data is because he had changed his name. She didn't know the reason when I pressed further."

"How did she explain the incident in the DADA classroom?" Harry asked with a frown.

"As per the Headmistress, Professor White has a condition in which his magical energy becomes unstable periodically and hence the amulet is required to dissipate the overflow."

"A bit far-fetched but plausible. What do you think?" Harry nodded slowly.

"I don't know. The reasoning is sound. Actually too sound and solid. Makes me suspicious…" She drifted away with her thoughts.

***B***

The long hall was dimly lit, the stained glass preventing most of the light to pass through. There was an eerie chill surrounding the hall which had nothing to do with the temperature. Fear hung in the air and those who had gathered shuddered involuntarily.

The man, if you could call him that, sat in his throne glaring at them. His red eyes seemed to pierce the hearts of each person who stood in front of him.

"Welcome back. Hope you enjoyed your stay at the Ministry." Sarcasm dripped from his lethal voice causing the quivering of the gathered death eaters go onto a whole new level. He smirked. He just loved this feeling of power he had over people, the fear he induced with just a few words. Soon the world would be on its knees begging him for mercy. Oh he couldn't wait for that moment.

"I am rather pleased by your loyalty; you came here the instant you were released." The evil one went on with an unreadable voice. Many of them were slightly relieved at the praise and someone sighed and swiped the sweat from their forehead.

"However," he went on with an edge to his voice. "I have learned that half of you are unarmed, your wands broken beyond repair. And what's more, there are no wandmakers available to make you a new wand. How unlucky. For you." The gasps of fear, the dread, the terrorized eyes really goaded him on. He had to use his last bit of self control to maintain his indifferent posture. The group that had gathered drifted from each other, the ones with wands encircling the ones without. The wand less death eaters looked around in futile to look for an exit. They were fools. What were they expecting? To be accepted with wide open arms?

"Without your wands you are of no use to me. You are like muggles; and you know what I do with muggles." He nodded and around twenty sets of green light turned the group in the centre to into a pile of dead bodies. Voldemort chuckled but the tone that was anything but happy.

He turned to those who had wands in their hands and found a relieved look on their faces. They thought they were spared. _How wishful was their thinking_, the man with red eyes mused. "As for the remaining," He said slowly, enjoying the effect he had on them. "You will not suffer the same fate as theirs." Again the look of relief on their faces really gave him some morbid satisfaction. However, their expressions got wiped off as death eaters stepped out from the shadows and surrounded them. After another nod from him, the hall filled with screams and howls of never ending pain. Voldemort shook and moved his head around as if he was listening to a melody. This was too much for a sane person to handle. And Harry was still sane.

He shot up from his bed, a scream leaving his throat after being subjected to another horrid vision.

As his breathing steadied and his eyes cleared, he found himself in the infirmary. Again. "Brilliant." He muttered. He figured he must have collapsed after being assaulted by that vision.

His two friends, plus Luna, Neville, Ginny and Susan stood staring at him with apprehension. Madam Pompfrey was standing at one side; her usual stern eyes were softened with concern. Everyone knew what happened, even Susan.

"I am alright now. Just a bad vision. Can I have the potions Madam Pompfrey." He said nonchalantly as if fainting and screaming and having visions was a normal thing. It was for him at least.

He expected the nurse to scold him for his manners and the bland way in which he was taking in the situation. But she was quiet and wordlessly handed him a potion which he drank down in one gulp. His tongue seemed to have taken a liking to the horrid taste of the potions. Now that was saying something. He smacked his lips, drawing looks of astonishment. They thought he was going crazy. They were not too far away from the truth.

***B***

Quidditch tryouts went well. If you didn't count the fact that Harry was ignored by almost every participant throughout the selection process. It was if he never existed. It was a big difference than what happened last year. The students had fawned over him; even students from other houses had come for tryouts. Girls had giggled and the boys had cheered for him. That was a thing of the past though.

_If this was the state now, what would happen at match days,_ Harry mused. It seemed that his calculative decision to make Ron a co-captain didn't go in vain. Without him, there might not have been a team in the first place. Now that would have been a problem.

Anyway, so he was still the Seeker, Ron was still the Keeper, the beaters were the same and Ginny and Demelza were still Chasers. The only new addition was Dean Thomas. Dean flew well and his game was good in patches but he still managed to outshine the other hopefuls. Ron didn't want him in the team, his brotherly love coming in the way. But Harry's wise words managed to drill some sense into him, after which Dean was grudgingly accepted.

Dean looked surprised when told of his selection. He had suspected that he wasn't in the best of books with both captains and a chance of getting a spot was next to zero. But after getting the happy news, he smiled pleasantly at Ron as if he was the reason of his selection. Harry didn't mind. A morbid part of him was having fun playing a role of a villain.

They also managed to pick up a few reserves just in case of an injury as well as to ensure the dominance of Gryffindor team in the future to come. At least that's what Ron had told him. Harry wasn't too sure whether the future was worth waiting for.

***B***

It was Saturday. They were in the Battle Club room.

The noise was at its peak as Ron had just downed his opponent in a blink of an eye. They clapped for the new hero of Gryffindor. Harry had unknowingly donned the cap of the villain.

Ron, after waving at his supporters, returned to his seat next to Hermione while Harry was sitting on the other side. As usual, Professor Hart was being the referee.

Some duels had been entertaining while others had been one sided. Every one of the students who had been in the DA had won their fights with respective ease. Hermione had taken her time, giving her opponent a chance. A chance to lose that is. She was a force to be reckoned with. So was Ginny; she was ruthless in taking out her opponent, who seemed to tower over her but that didn't deter her in the least.

The match after the next was Harry's. He was going against Colin.

"You can sit out this one. You will only lose a point." Hermione repeated for the tenth time. Harry acted as if he didn't hear her; taking advantage of the fact that the hall was too noisy. But Hermione persisted until Harry turned to her with unyielding eyes and a resolute face. The expression on his face told her that there was nothing she could do to stop him from duelling.

Hermione's face took on a pleading look. "Harry, it was only yesterday that you had that vision. You don't seem to have recovered from it." Harry didn't argue. There was no point in it. He had already made up his mind. Hermione sighed in resignation.

Harry looked at her out of the corner of his eyes. He was very grateful that she cared about him so much. But he couldn't miss out on such an opportunity.

Lance had told him that this was his chance to do what he had to and move towards his goal. Lance was well aware what Harry was going to do but we wasn't too happy about it. Dumbledore and Lance had planned for him to lead the united Hogwarts from the front but the current situation was anything but that. Harry was despised but that hatred seemed to have unknowingly pushed the houses together. Harry had repeated Lance's own words back to him. _'The end result is more important than the means_.' Lance couldn't argue after that.

Harry was still at a loss on how to go about what he was planning. Actually he didn't even have a plan; neither did he know what he wanted in the first place.

The current match was over and Harry and Colin were called to the arena. Suddenly the hall went silent which felt impossible a moment ago.

However, as they both stepped on the arena, the crowd started to chant. 'Colin! Colin!' It seemed that the whole of Hogwarts had his back.

Colin was shocked by the support. Harry chuckled dryly. He looked over at the Gryffindor crowd to see the reaction of friends but couldn't spot them.

He turned to his adversary who was eying him with utter dislike. He walked towards him, his eyes burning with hunger for something Harry couldn't perceive. _Was it vengeance?_

When Harry was in hearing distance, Colin stopped. Harry studied the hardened face, the sharp eyes. Death really did change people; the way in which he had changed.

"Don't think I will go easy on you. I have learned a lot since last year. This isn't just a duel and I am here to win." Colin said sharply.

Harry didn't react and just raised an eyebrow and gave him a skeptical look. This enraged Colin even further, his wand arm trembling with fury. "How… how dare you mock me? I have suffered a lot of pain because of you. The pain you know nothing about. You didn't even know your parents before they died. My brother and I had lived together for so many years. We knew each other like the back of our hands. And then he died in front of me. And you didn't do anything. You were busy with your life, dreaming about your fame and wealth. I hate you."

Colin had struck a nerve and Harry's indifferent expression changed into a menacing look. Colin even stepped back with a hint of fear. "Don't lecture me about what pain is." The voice though calm had a lethal ring to it.

"Stop your act. I know who you are. Just a fraud, nothing more. My wand is dying to inflict pain on you. I won't let you lose easily. You will beg for it. Just wait and see."

"Bring it on." Harry challenged with a grim look.

Professor Hart seemed to have let the interaction between them complete before stepping in to begin the duel. Those in the first two rows had clearly heard the war of words. They crowd had actually had quietened themselves down to hear what was being said.

"Bow" The Professor ordered.

Harry bowed but Colin didn't. To bow in front of Harry was the most distasteful thing anything could have asked from him. Professor Hart looked in Colin's direction but didn't repeat his order. He just moved back and said. "You know the rules, nothing lethal. Begin!"

Colin was the first to react and sent a flurry of cutting hexes and piercing curses with excellent accuracy. The rage he felt fueled his power and the spells leaving his wand were very strong.

The next thing which happened shocked everyone in the hall. _Everyone_. The silence was deafening.

Harry had stood his ground as the curses struck his body with ferocity. He stepped back to keep his balance but otherwise, he was still standing. What was more shocking was he didn't even flinch as blood oozed out of the cuts the spells inflicted. The unnerving gaze he sent at Colin was freaking him out.

Colin followed up with few blasting hexes hoping that Harry would dodge or at least defend it. But to his horror, the spell struck him head on, flinging him to the other side of the arena like a rag doll. For a second he didn't move and Colin feared the worst. But steadily Harry got up and walked towards him with strong steps. There was gash on his forehead and blood seemed to be running down all over his body. The face however had a serene look causing Colin to step back. His wand refused to move as the bloodied boy made his way towards him.

"This is nothing." Harry said calmly, his voice somehow echoing in the hall. "The physical pain I feel now is just like a pin prick on my finger. Nothing more. You have no idea what pain is. No idea at all. If you had then this wouldn't have hurt you." Saying which he sent two cutting hexes just below Colin's kneecaps. Colin stumbled and howled in pain.

Colin was on his knees but his arm shot up and sent a stunner at Harry. Harry was expecting it and stepped aside, as if he had all the time in the world. Another set of cutting hexes hit Colin around his elbows. It seemed that his tendons were hit and his arms dropped to his side.

Harry walked over to the moaning Colin and stood right in front of him. "It is good that you don't know the pain I feel. I am relieved actually. You will heal with time, I am sure. Remove hatred from your heart, do not let it defile your purity. You are a good boy and I like you even if you hate me. Remember, that your brother didn't die in vain. I will not let him. That is my promise to you." He had said all this in a whisper, loud enough for only Colin to hear.

He bent down and gently removed the wand from Colin's weak grip. However, to those who were looking from a distance got an impression that Harry had snatched the wand from him and pushed him to the floor.

Actually, Colin was unable cope with the physical pain and Harry's words and had fainted.

Harry looked down at the boy and sighed. The pain in his body was unbearable. It took every ounce of his energy to look unhurt. And it was no pinprick as he had told him. He suspected he might have broken some bones. Nothing irreparable at least.

He walked over to the healers who seemed ready for him while Madam Pompfrey looked as if she wanted to run over to the arena and treat him there itself.

He was the clear winner but Professor was too flabbergasted to announce it. Two more healers conjured a stretcher and took Colin off the arena. The bloody mess was cleared and the next duel began. But the mood of the crowd had gone morose and the horrors of the last match were still fresh in their minds.

Luckily there were no broken bones and he was back to normal in a jiffy. Well, normal in some twisted sense that is.

***B***

He had left the Battle Club room as soon as he was deemed fit enough to leave and moved along the corridors aimlessly.

A confrontation with his friends was the last thing he wanted. What could he tell them anyway? What explanation could he give? His life was getting entangled in the most terrible ways possible. How he wished to be in a different place where there was nothing to worry about. How he wished he was not Harry Potter...

A flapping of wings brought him out of his wishful thinking. An owl landed on the nearest window sill, eying him with impatience as if asking him to hurry up and relieve it of the message that it had for him.

The owl had come from the Ministry without a doubt. He untied the parchment and off the owl went. _Busy owls_,he mused.

When he opened the parchment his eyes froze at the contents. It was not signed and it didn't mention who it was addressed to. But that didn't take a genius to figure out.

_There is a mole in the Aurors guarding Hogwarts. Be very careful._

It was short and unclear. Which of the fifty Aurors did it speak of? The handwriting was mostly untidy and loopy in some parts causing him to frown. Was this from Percy? No, that couldn't be possible. His handwriting was too neat. Also, he hated him and held him responsible for his estrangement from his family. Then who? He tried to remember the ex-students who worked at the ministry but no one came to his mind.

A sound of a footstep interrupted his thoughts and as he looked up an Auror stepped out from the shadows, wand pointed towards him. It was the same Auror that was in the six man team that escorted him to St Mungo's. And it was the same Auror which the warning note referred to. The wand was pointed in his direction and the killing curse was about to leave his mouth. Harry was too close to dodge and too late to draw out his wand.

In short, he was almost dead.


	22. New Allies

A/N: Thank you for all your reviews. Even if they are not many, it warms my heart. I have been writing the last few chapters while travelling to work and then editing them on my PC just before I post. Don't have much time for it otherwise. So I will be posting a chapter per week. Hope you stay interested till the end. Thanks again! Enjoy!

* * *

New Allies

* * *

"Mr Potter, what are you doing here?" The Auror inquired, lowering his wand.

Harry was silent. The adrenaline surge through him was dissipating, leaving behind a tired body. His hyper sensitive body mechanism had an involuntary reaction to the stressful situation. At least that was the explanation Lance had given him. Not that he understood.

"I found it too stuffy inside." Harry responded, realizing that an answer was required of him.

"You had a match today?" The Auror moved towards him, his physical features becoming more visible to Harry under the light of the setting sun.

Harry's eyes lit up with recognition and his body started to relax, crumbling the note in his fist. Harry nodded in response. "Sam, right?"

The Auror's eyes shot up in surprise. "You... you know my name? I am truly honoured." He said seriously.

Harry chuckled dryly. "One cannot forget the Auror who he had _almost_ assaulted and then lived to tell the tale."

"Assaulted won't be the right word. And I was being an ass so I somewhat deserved it." Sam had a sheepish smile on his face. Harry grinned. _First __impression was not always the right one_, Harry presumed. "So did you win? Wait, let me guess... You did indeed. You are _the_ Harry Potter." Harry wasn't a fan of flattery but he could allow that one. An Auror contact might come in handy in the future, especially the one within Hogwarts. And him being a part of the Order was an additional bonus.

Harry had been too distracted to see who exactly was in the team that were escorting them to St Mungo's. A lot was on his mind that day. "Doing alright? St Mungo's was rather rough for you guys; I heard one of you even died."

"I am Okay. Yeah it was my friend who died." Sam whispered, looking out the window and then turned to Harry. "I apologize for our failure. If it weren't for..." He trailed off.

"For?" Harry prompted.

"I dunno." The Auror replied with a confused look. "When I was revived I was ready to hear the worst. But miraculously, the death eaters had been taken out, rather viciously at that. I heard one of them has even succumbed to his injuries." Sam was so busy recollecting that day's events that he missed the horrified expression on Harry's face. He quickly turned around and hid his face in the darkness. He had killed another one. There was intent. He had lost control again. It seemed that the more he tried to abstain from becoming a killer, the more he became one. Was he really trying? Was it really worth an effort anyway? They deserved death for all the sins and atrocities they had committed. But did that give him the right to pass on the death sentence? The answer was easy; No. But wasn't it unfair that one side is out for blood while the other side has to resort to almost harmless strategies? It seemed as if a debate was taking place in his mind while he stood in the shadows as a spectator. And the topic was; is Harry Potter a saint's shield or a devil incarnated.

"Mr Potter, are you alright?"

Harry turned to meet the Auror's eyes and let a sheepish smile come over his face. "I am sorry. I kind of spaced out."

Sam nodded with a knowing look. "A lot has been happening around you. It must be difficult to live under so much attention. I hear you seem to be at crossroads with the rest of Hogwarts students."

Harry didn't respond to that and just gave a wry smile. No one could fathom what he was going through. He really wanted to distract his mind from the morose thoughts. "So you were saying?"

"Well, yeah... where was I?" The Auror frowned in concentration. "Right! So we arrested those death eaters, what was left of them that is. And imagine our surprise when the dark mark on their forearms miraculously disappeared, when we had brought them in for questioning. We had taken special care to ensure that they don't drink any suspicious potions or let anyone else besides the healers near them."

"Don't tell me that they were released as well?" Harry almost growled.

Sam seemed slightly surprised by the underlying anger in his voice. After a pause he replied. "Fortunately no. We had the testimony of St Mungo's staff who were on the scene to support the arrest. So there is no escape for them."

Harry's eyes softened and again looked away. It seemed there was a huge build up of rage within him that threatened to burst through at the slightest of provocation. _Control!_

"Good for you guys. Better under lock and key, and behind bars than out loose to cause destruction to life and property."

"We are not doing much good in that area I am afraid. Forty five death eaters were released within a day and we were left helplessly watching their backs as they taunted us openly. And that was after all the trouble we went through." The Auror exhaled dejectedly. Harry forced back a chuckle. If anyone had a right to be disappointed, it was _him_. "And if that wasn't enough, the media has the gall to smear our department's name. I thought we were finally doing something and now this..."

Harry smiled in spite of himself. It was he who needed consolation and here he was calming an Auror. "I have faith in you guys. If you lot work as a cohesive group, I am sure you can make a difference and no one could take it away from you."

The Auror looked at him as if Harry was a different person. There was respect, admiration and relief in his gaze. "Thank you. Those words mean a lot to me. Let me tell you that even I have faith in you."

"Wha... what do you mean?" Harry was caught off guard.

"You are the chosen one right? I am sure you can get rid of that... of that... of Voldermort." The last part was whispered but Harry heard him. Harry raised his eyebrows but didn't comment. Was it that he didn't fear the name or was he just trying to impress Harry?

"Who gave you that idea?" Harry questioned with a neutral expression.

"C'mon. I am not stupid, or else I wouldn't be an Auror, would I? He has been trying to get to you with single minded obsession, planning and plotting to do you in. It seems to be more than just vengeance. What other explanation could one give for his actions?"

A slight fear crawled into Harry's eyes. If an ordinary Auror could figure that out so easily then it wouldn't take long for others as well. Speculations and rumours would lead to half truths and then...

"However, as I said earlier, I have total faith in you." The Auror continued.

Harry chuckled darkly. "Aren't you asking a wee bit too much from a seventeen year old. Only a fool can afford such fantasies." Sarcasm dripped from his tone.

"I will be a fool then." Auror Sam defended himself.

"And a coward."

"Coward?" Auror Sam raised an eyebrow, indignation and confusion lacing his voice.

"What you are asking of me is just an attempt to conceal the fear that rules your mind when going against Voldemort and hide behind me while I go head to head against that git." The Auror raised an eyebrow at the nonchalant way the dark lord's name was said. "Although, if you think about it, not many have faced him and lived. So I cannot blame you."

"Are you saying that you don't fear him at all?" The Auror asked with scepticism.

"No." Harry had a resolute expression, the intensity in the eyes really giving weight to his statement. "He is just another human. All this hype that surrounds him and his exaggerated past gives him an image of an immortal devil. The terror that he instils among the people gets half of his job done. Fear feeds fear and then in the end we have the whole world quivering under his gaze and those who resist, stand out among the crowd and are the first one to be taken out."

The Auror was left dumbstruck by the words of a seventeen year kid. And here he thought he was the more mature one among the two. But still it sounded like big talk coming from-

"You may think I am just talking big but," The Auror gaped in surprise. How... how did read his mind? Legilimency? Impossible, he was too young. Yeah, just a coincidence possibly. "Something wrong?" Harry inquired at the sudden change in the Auror's expression.

"No... nothing."

Harry threw a curious glance at him before continuing. "I am not just saying stuff for the sake of it. I believe it. However, there is no denying the fact that he is very strong and evil. A very bad combination, that. I know what he can do but that in itself is no reason to fear. Not many have seen him but fear the worst. The fear of the unknown gets to most of the people. Voldemort is rather good at mind games. He hasn't even showed his face yet and the wizarding world is already trembling in terror. Imagine what will happen when he reveals himself? He looks every bit a dark lord should be. I have seen him and let me tell you that you will have nightmares if you were the unlucky one to see him."

"I don't understand you. Are you trying to scare the crap out of me or what?" The Auror asked with a slight tremor.

Harry chuckled. "I am talking in riddles, aren't I? There is only one thing that I feel for Voldemort. Hate. From every fibre of my body. I have suffered a lot because of him. As long as he is alive, no one can live in peace. And someone needs to be the one to take the responsibility to finish him for good. We cannot afford to look at others for this. If all able bodied people who know how to duel come on the front and fight then we would never be in such a situation." The Auror nodded in agreement. Harry had nothing more to say, neither did the Auror. Harry had this strange feeling that whatever he was saying, he had read somewhere. _Of course!_ It was the book gifted by Lance to him on his birthday.

Auror Sam was totally in awe with the person standing in front of him. This was no kid in terms of maturity. Even though Harry had denied being the chosen one, he was everything that a leader, a hero could be.

Harry met the Auror's gaze and looked else where. He hoped there weren't any _Hermione genes_ in him or else there would be trouble. He chided himself for being so open about how he felt with a complete stranger. _Well, it cannot be undone so be it._ Time to gather some information.

"Can you tell me what exactly happened at St Mungo's?" Harry asked with a hopeful expression. He wasn't expecting much anyway. There was no harm in trying, was there? He needed to find the mole before he got to him. And this was the best place to start.

An undecided look passed the Auror which gave way to a small smile. "Sure, at least I owe you that much." He cleared his throat and dived in with a full length description, which was not much. He had been a part of the two man team which were following the party discreetly in plain clothes. According to him the first one to go down was the Head Auror, seemingly jumped by three death eaters in plain clothes as well from behind. He and his colleague were keeping an eye on the corridor outside the room where Cho was kept. It happened so fast that they both had gone down without a fight. It was as if the death eaters knew who they were. That confirmed Harry's suspicion, along with the note that he still clutched in his palm. But still, the answer still alluded him. It could be anyone of the fifty Aurors including Sam as everyone knew about their little trip to St Mungo's.

"Thank you for sharing that with me." Harry gave a genuine smile.

"It was nothing." He looked out the window and it was dark already. "Merlin! Time just flew by. I gotta go. If the Head Auror finds me chatting around with students, he will have my hide." And with a small laugh he raced out of sight.

Harry stood there for a moment and then walked towards his quarters. Their small chat did get his mind off the present. Harry found the Auror to his liking. His cold mind also reluctantly agreed with him. He was a good source of information after all. An ally indeed, including the Ministry messenger.

***B***

The door opened and in came Susan. She found Harry curled up in the sofa nearest to the fire place. It had become one his favorite spots. Harry turned to her with a face deep in thought.

"Hi" She had a pleasant smile on her face. Harry smiled in return.

"How was your duel?" Harry asked. "I am sorry I didn't stay that long to watch it." He added as an afterthought with a apologetic smile.

"It's alright. I won with difficulty. My opponent was a fifth year who seemed rather quick on his feet but luckily, he lacked the knowledge of advanced spells. I came out on the top though." She informed with a hint of pride.

"Good for you. I hope that being a part of D.A. helped you."

"Of course it did." She nodded furiously as if trying to prove her point. "I just hope my next duel isn't against you."

"Scared of me, are you?" Harry said with an evil grin. " You know, if you ask me nicely, I might go easy on you." He couldn't hold back a chuckle.

Susan laughed heartily which seemed to bring a wide smile to Harry's face. He found great pleasure in making others happy. Too bad he couldn't share that happiness.

"I am not scared. I just don't want to humiliate you in front of all the students." Susan retorted with a matching smile. This time Harry laughed till his sides started to ache.

"Oooh! I am trembling even at that thought." Harry exaggerated his tremble, giving him a rather comical look. The meeting room was filled with laughter.

At this very moment, Ron and Hermione stepped in and found the pair in this rather happy state.

Susan was the first to notice them and quickly quietened down. "I will be off then. See you tomorrow." She left through her doorway without looking back.

Harry's friends had smiles plastered in their faces, which for some unknown reason irritated Harry a bit. "What?"

"Nothing." They said together and then looked at each other. Harry had sobered down and his face had again gone back to being unreadable.

"We are just happy that you have a reason to smile and laugh. You rarely are in such a good mood." Hermione explained. "It seems Susan brings a smile to your face." She added with a knowing look which passed between them.

"She is just a friend." _Who just minds her own business and leaves him alone when required_, he wanted to add but didn't.

They just smiled at each other as if his denial confirmed some of their notion.

Hermione turned to a Harry with a look that he was all too aware of. _Grilling time!_ "Do you want to talk about today's duel?"

"No." Before Hermione could press on, he continued. "How is Colin?"

"Alright I guess." Ron answered. "He is bit more reserved if anything." Ron shot a warning look at Hermione to stop her questioning. She looked slightly affronted by that. "So we are all with a point. I wonder who we will duel in the next round. Not among us I hope."

Harry nodded but didn't say anything. Ron seemed to be protecting Harry from Hermione's interrogation with small talk. Ron did usually surprise him with sudden burst of understanding and maturity. Unluckily, it doesn't last long. This brought a smile on his face.

"We have some time before dinner. Care to show us your quarters?" Ron asked hopefully.

"Its against the rules." Hermione rebuked him.

"Gladly." Harry got up ignoring Hermione and opened the door, followed by an enthusiastic Ron and a reluctant Hermione, though Harry could perceive a hint of eagerness in her eyes. All her reservations were forgotten when they were in his quarters. They oohed and aahed at the facilities available. Ron looked as if he was ready to jump in the bath.

"This is much better than the Prefect's bath. Makes me rather jealous of you." Ron said with a wishful look in his eyes. He went on without thinking. "I would love to be in your shoes."

Harry's eyes darkened. "You won't be able to bear the weight of my shoes." Saying which, he left, leaving behind a confused Ron. Hermione knew what Harry meant and just shook her head. Ron could be so thick sometimes._Oh Hermione!_ Only if she knew who was being thick most of the times.

***B***

It was past curfew but being a Head Boy surely had some perks. Harry strolled in the corridors aimlessly trying to clear his mind.

Dinner had been rather awkward. That little scene that he was part of in the Battle Club increased everyone's hatred twofold. He could almost feel the waves of resentment in the air.

Harry did his best to ignore everyone but that was easier said than done. He tried to concentrate on his plate but the loud whispers around him didn't help matters much. The only good thing was Colin. Harry wasn't sure how he would take the duel and his last statement but it seemed he took it positively. When their eyes had met he had given a nod. Even that gesture relieved him. At least he was no more the part of the crowd. Their anger and hatred which was directed towards him was making him nauseous.

Harry sighed. It couldn't be helped. He looked up after hearing footsteps coming from the opposite direction.

It was Ginny, her wand in her hand. "Harry? What are you doing here?"

"Inspecting your patrols. I heard you were slacking in your duties." Harry responded, trying to keep the humour out of his voice.

"I don't!" Ginny exclaimed with indignation. Harry just chuckled, unable to hold back his laughter. She just punched him.

"You are a violent one." Harry complained, massaging his arm with exaggeration.

Ginny pocketed her wand and moved on with a huff. Harry was quickly beside her, easily matching her pace with the help of his height. "You need to be on your guard. What if I am not who you think I am?"

Ginny turned around to argue but found no one walking beside her. She looked over her shoulder to find Harry standing very still, her own wand pointed towards her.

"Harry?" There was a hint of panic in her voice as she frantically felt for her wand but her hand came out empty. "Please stop this, you are scaring me."

The silent Harry approached her as if ready to pounce on its prey. Ginny couldn't move. _He is Harry, he is Harry_, she kept repeating that in her mind.

He was right in front of her and raised the wand. "You dropped your wand." He whispered, a grin appearing on his face.

She snatched the wand from him and had to stop herself from stunning him. She punched him instead, rather hardly at that.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"For scaring the hell out of me." She said with anger.

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked innocently. "I was just returning your wand. I didn't like the way you thanked me though."

"You deserve it. It should be a reminder for you to not to mess with me." She warned him with a menacing look.

Harry couldn't hold himself back anymore and burst out laughing. "The look on your face was priceless." He managed to say. He deftly avoided another punch from the red head. "Touchy, aren't we?" He laughed even harder which seem to echo in the silent corridors.

Ginny couldn't hold back a chuckle at his antics. "You seem to be in rather good mood."

"I am with you." Harry responded without missing a beat.

"Wh... what?" Ginny's eyes widened and a red tinged crept into her cheeks.

"Got you again." Harry teased, laughing again merrily.

Ginny just shook her head and smiled. For a moment she thought that finally... but it was not to be...

"All this noise would surely attract Filch." Ginny said with concern.

"You have nothing to worry about. You are with Harry Potter." He said rather pompously, beating his chest with his fist.

"What has gotten into you?" Ginny asked curiously with a chuckle. He was behaving just like the twins. This was so unlike the Harry she knew. Reserved. Quiet. Loner.

Harry's expression changed and he looked away. "I was just..." He trailed off.

Then it hit her. He was just trying to distract himself from the pain and suffering he was going through. He had basically become an outcast in the school. People were dying around him. Even if she tried she couldn't have understood the suffering he was enduring. But she could at least support him. Even if it just meant being a friend.

She neared the gap between them and held his hand. He looked at her with unreadable eyes but she knew that an intense pain was concealed behind them. "I will always be there for you. If you have something on your mind, you can talk to me about it. Maybe I can help."

Harry smiled at her. "Thank you."

"Thank you won't be enough though." Harry frowned in confusion. "You had promised to train me, remember?"

"Did I?" He scratched his head, doing his best to hide his smile.

"Harry!" She exclaimed before chuckling together.

Their laughter died down as they walked silently towards the Gryffindor common room. They passed Harry's quarters but Harry had decided to accompany her.

As they approached the Fat Lady's portrait, Harry stopped. "I'll go back now."

"Won't you come in? Ron and Hermione might be waiting for you inside."

"I have already spoken with them. Also I don't want to give Dean any ideas." Harry said with a look. Ginny reluctantly nodded. They parted ways after wishing each other a good night.

***B***

Ron sat gaping at the smirking Harry. It was Sunday and they were in the common room. They had a chessboard in between them. Harry had just moved a knight to checkmate Ron's king which obliged by dropping it's sword. They could even hear the king muttering obscenities. What's more, it was two games in a row. Harry attributed his victories to the numerous chess games with Lance. Unknowingly Harry found himself planning his every move in advance, his eyes roaming around the chessboard as if inspecting a battlefield, marching his troops ahead and coming on top with calculated sacrifices.

Ron slumped back in defeat. "I am having a very bad day today. Losing to you twice has really hit my confidence."

"I am sure I got lucky, or your concentration might have wavered." Harry consoled him, looking at Hermione for support who was just looking at him curiously. Harry quickly averted his eyes.

"I don't think so. I wanted to win and I am sure I didn't make any mistakes. You were playing far better than normal. Or I have just gone stupid. It was only yesterday that I lost three games to Hermione." Harry found that now Hermione was averting his gaze. Ron was very good and Harry himself had never defeated him at it and Hermione had only managed it a couple of times in the last six years. Then how did she manage three wins in a single day?

Ron sighed. "I should just quit playing chess..."

"C'mon Ron. You cannot win everytime. You will have bad days. No one is perfect you know." Hermione chastised him but with soft eyes. Ron just looked at her and suddenly they both forgot that Harry was even there.

Harry looked on with amusement. He cleared his throat and chuckled at the blush that appeared on both their faces. He didn't want to embarrass them so he said. "I wanted to tell you guys something." He looked around to ensure that no one could overhear them.

"Is it about-" Hermione was saying before Harry interrupted her.

"No." He said with finality. He wanted to share what he knew but Hermione's constant poking around was giving him second thoughts. He fished into his pocket and handed over the small parchment that he had received last night.

The two read and reread it and looked up at Harry for an explanation, who willingly obliged. "I received a ministry owl last night carrying this anonymous note. I don't know who sent it. Anyone of you recognize the handwriting?" He asked, looking more at Ron. However, they both shook their heads.

"Who could it be?" Ron asked rhetorically.

"Hopefully someone with good intentions. Or else why would someone bother with the warning note. What do you make of this note Harry?" Hermione glanced at Harry.

"It might be true." Harry relayed to them the necessary details of the conversation he had with the Auror. The pair were in a pensive mood and nodded their heads in agreement with Harry's earlier assumption.

"I have a feeling that this note won't be the last." Hermione proclaimed and Harry couldn't help but agree. After a pause, she said. "I don't know who it could be besides Percy."

Ron snorted in disbelief. "No, it cannot be him. He practically despises Harry. And it is not his handwriting. I am certain it isn't him."

Hermione nodded. Her eyes were moving rapidly as if examining possible candidates on an imaginary list in front of her.

Harry left the thinking to her and turned back to the chessboard. "Another game?"

Ron eyed the board undecidedly but gave in. "I will not let you make it three in a row." He challenged, the competitive spirit returning to his eyes.

Harry just chuckled and a fresh game began. It was well fought but Ron returned victorious in the end. Harry hadn't held back either.

"The chess champion is back in form!" He announced with a wide grin on his face. There was a carefree look about him and his eyes were lively. Those who heard him rolled their eyes and smiled at his childish innocence, excluding Harry that is.

Harry had this sudden pang of jealousy that he tried his best to hide. Ron had everything that he wanted. Harry didn't want to feel that way about his best friend but he couldn't help it. Harry felt a dark storm brewing in his mind and he left the common room without a word, before he could a create a scene.

***B***

"I missed D.A. more than anyone else I think." Ginny exhaled, her thoughts going back to her fourth year.

Harry stood patiently at her side. They were in the Room of Requirement which looked exactly the way it used to during the D.A. meetings. It certainly drew back memories bringing a smile on his face.

"Right so what am I going to learn today?" Ginny turned to him with expectant eyes.

"I dunno. To duel I guess." Harry replied rather nervously. Why was he getting nervous?

There was a look of disappointment on Ginny's face. "Well alright. Do you have any tips for me?"

"Yeah, don't get knocked out." He joked earning him a half hearted glare.

"Fine. If that is how you want it. Don't complain if you find yourself licking the dust off the floor." Ginny retorted, her hands on her hips.

Harry just chuckled. "Feisty." He murmured and then added. "A bit scary as well."

Ginny laughed at the comment. She really enjoyed his company.

"Down to business, shall we?" Harry said, moving away from her and bringing out his wand.

She nodded and imitated his movements. They stopped a few metres away from each other and poised in battle stance.

Harry nodded and the spell fire began. Harry was amazed at the agility and speed Ginny moved with. Her spell casting was also fast, though a tad weak.

Harry had planned to try something new for himself. His strength had always been his mobility but he decided to stay rooted to his spot and hence giving himself a handicap.

He blocked the group of spells coming at him and interspersed his defense with the accurate stunners. They traded spells for a few more minutes and Harry suddenly saw a pattern in her movements. He sent two well placed stunners at her. She managed to hastily block the first but stepped right into the second one. She was down.

Harry revived her with an apologetic look on his face.

Ginny groggily stood up and looked at him. "There is no need to be sorry. I lost fair and square. You were great, I couldn't even trouble you with my fast attacks."

"Nah... There were moments when I was getting overwhelmed by-"

"You are just saying that to console me. I lost rather quickly for my liking." She seemed disappointed with her failure.

Harry didn't know what to say. He tried a different tact. "Want me tell you where you faltered?"

She looked up, interested in hearing what he had to say.

Harry began. "To tell you the truth, you were very fast and your spell casting was even faster." Ginny looked away to hide her blush. Harry had never complimented her. Harry moved on as if he hadn't noticed. "Although, I did find you were wasting your energy on dodging too much and some of your spells though accurate, were rather meaningless. Most of the spells were harmlessly absorbed by my shield. In a duel, variety of spell is not that important, rather you need to play to your strengths. Read your opponent and see what he does. If you would have noticed, I wasn't moving much. You could have easily capitalized on that. However, even with these faults, you are a tough one to beat." He wiped the sweat of his forehead to prove his statement.

Ginny had been looking at him attentively, lapping up whatever pointers Harry was sending towards her. "You saw all that when we were duelling?" She asked with astonishment.

"Well..." Harry looked around as if trying to think a way out of this. "You did ask me for some tips so I was just on the lookout for those little things."

Ginny gave him a grateful smile and Harry hid the sigh of relief that nearly escaped him. "Another round?"

"Sure."

And they were at it for an hour. Ginny was dead tired as the pair walked back to the common room. "You seem unaffected by the endless duels we had." She had lost all of them, but she did manage to last a bit longer each time.

Harry chuckled at her. "I think my morning runs are keeping me fit. You on the other hand... resemble an old lady." He stepped away in anticipation of a wild swing but the _old lady_ was too tired for even that.

Harry quickly closed the gap between them and placed his fingers on her forehead.

"Wa... What are doing?" Ginny asked in surprise.

"Just checking whether you are alright. You didn't hit me so I wondered..." He had to say it. An oomph escaped him as a punch went to his gut. "I am dying."

"Good luck with that." Ginny said with a chuckle and moved ahead.

"You are so cruel. Leaving me here alone to die." Harry called out from behind her with faux pain in his voice.

Ginny just laughed at his antics. He was reminding her of the twins. They knew how to bring a smile on her face. So did Harry.

When Ginny didn't turn around, Harry walked rapidly till he was next to her. "So how was the training? Did you like your trainer?" Harry suggested, wagging his eyebrows.

Ginny stopped walking and gaped at him. _The_ Harry Potter couldn't be flirting with her. She shook her head to check whether she was dreaming or not.

"You are so easy to tease. No wonder the twins like you so much." Harry said with mirth in his eyes.

"They like my Bat Bogey Hex as well." She said fingering the wand in her pocket.

"Is that a threat?" Harry continued, raising his eyebrow.

"Maybe." Ginny told him with a menacing smile but Harry seemed unaffected, his smile even widening. "You are having fun aren't you? Teasing me relentlessly?" She said with mock hurt in her eyes.

Harry's smile quickly disappeared and his expression turned into regret. "I... am sorry. I didn't mean to. It is just that I find it easier talking to you. If you want I will-"

Ginny burst out laughing. "Even two can play at this game you know."

Harry's happy mood didn't return though. He just walked beside her with a faraway look. "Does Dean know that you are training with me?" He asked out of the blue.

"Well..." Ginny was caught off guard by that line of questioning.

"I figured as much. You know he hates me. You should not leave him in the dark. It would just make him more suspicious and it would turn out rather bad for everyone. You know what I am trying to say, aren't you?" Harry said softly.

She nodded mutely and they walked on with silence.

"Ginny! Harry!" Harry turned around and froze.

It was Luna. She pranced her way towards them, a dreamy smile on her face. "I had been told that I forgot about you. Weird isn't it?"

"Yeah..." Harry said nervously.

"Why have you been avoiding me? It is not your fault, you know?" Luna stated, her expressions unchanging.

"Well... I..." Harry turned to Ginny who promptly jumped in.

"We were just worried about you. It's nice that you are alright now." Ginny said calmly.

"I don't feel any different though. Just a bit sad that I forgot one of my friends. You were sad as well, right Harry?" Harry nodded helplessly. Guilt was overtaking him. He had been avoiding her, that was true. He didn't want to face her and her questions. What if she remembered the person responsible for her previous state? But here she was feeling sad for him. Harry couldn't meet her eyes in shame.

"See you around then. I am off to the library. I might have forgotten a few books there." She danced away from them.

Ginny shook her head. "She is such an innocent one. Only a cruel beast could have done something like that to her. I am just glad she is alright."

"So am I." Harry turned away to hide his pained expression. "So am I..."

They walked on in silence with no further surprises.

***B***

The great hall had burst into an uproar. Everyone seemed to be talking at the same time. Some excited while some worried. Their excitement was rather justified if the news the Headmistress had given them was anything to go by.

They were going to have a Hogsmead weekend this Sunday, the last one of the month of September. It was rather early and highly unsafe in the current circumstances.

"I don't agree with her decision." Hermione said causing those around her to gasp. She was not the one to openly disagree with a decision made by the school staff; and that too by the headmistress.

Harry however, agreed with her. He was certain that Voldemort would know about this. And what better place to strike than on a group of terrified students.

"What about the additional hundred Aurors that would be guarding the village? I don't think the death eaters would risk an attack with so many Aurors. I am just dying to go there." Ron said with a dreamy look.

"Be careful with what you say. It might become true." Harry whispered loudly as if in a trance. Ron paled slightly and those around him started laughing. Ron just harrumphed.

"I will speak with the Headmistress about this." Hermione said, disregarding what Ron was dreaming about. "She needs to know that it is not safe, no matter how many Aurors there are."

Before Ron could say anything, Harry interjected. "You don't think the Headmistress knows that? I am sure someone from the Ministry is pressurizing her or else she would never agree to this."

"But what would the Ministry gain from this?" Hermione enquired with irritation.

"It might be a move to show the strong front that the Ministry is displaying." Neville spoke with a thoughtful look. "That they will not back down in fear of the dark side and will continue on with normalcy."

"I think you may be right." Hermione agreed in surprise causing Neville to blush slightly at the praise. "However, I find it rather foolish if you ask me. There are other ways to garner support but who will tell that to the Minister?" She sighed. "Let us hope that they don't advertise this stand they are taking."

Her hopes were quashed when the next day's newspaper flew in.

"This is stupid, bordering on insanity. It is as if they are inviting an attack on Hogsmead." She yelled from the Gryffindor table. All eyes turned to her and she meekly sat down and ducked her head.

Harry just chuckled and turned around the newspaper.

'We are not scared' Rufus Scrimgeour was quoted as saying. A detailed list of all the normaal things that had been planned were mentioned in the article, the Hogsmead trip being one of them. In short, it was an open invitation to Voldemort to cause havoc. A challenge Harry was sure, he would gladly accept.

Harry threw down the Daily Prophet in disgust. "This is bad. Very bad..."

***B***

Harry fingered the Portkey in his pocket. It hadn't vibrated for the last three days since the damned article in the Daily Prophet. What did it mean? Was Voldemort planning something big? He did have an inkling what it could be though. Thanks to the idiots at the ministry.

He had just finished signing some papers and detention forms. Being a Head Boy was not easy. At least that's what he felt. He had just done some light reading but got bored quickly. He found studies and essays rather menial compared to what he did. Would it matter to the world if he failed the exams? However, the other test was more important.

He walked in through the portrait hole and before he could realize it, someone had shoved him straight into the wall besides the entrance.

It was Dean. And he had a furious expression on his face. Though he was pushed rather roughly into the wall, Harry didn't react. Just looked at Dean with disinterest. Dean's hands were clutching his collar and it seemed he wasn't going to let go anytime soon.

Harry looked around at the crowd that had gathered around him. Ron and Hermione were pushing their way through to him. Their expressions of concern for him contrasted the others that surrounded him. They were just looking at him as if he had murdered someone. Well he had actually but they didn't know about it, did they?

"Look at me. You!" Dean shouted in his face. Harry took his time to meet his gaze, enraging him further. "Don't... Don't you dare hurt her. Or else..." He threatened him for some unknown reason.

Strangely, Harry found it rather funny and chuckled in Dean's face. Dean nearly trembled, trying to control his anger. He would have pummeled Harry there itself. If Harry would have allowed him that is. "What are you going on about? Lost your mind, have you?"

Dean pushed him again into the wall with force. He was rather proud of his strength. He had good physique due to him being born in a Muggle family. But what happened next crushed his pride. Literally.

Harry had enough. He got hold of Dean's wrist and crushed them with all his strength. Dean yelped in pain and drew away. Harry released Dean's wrists and looked at him with fiery eyes. "You better start talking, I don't have time for your nonsense." He said sharply with a sneer, doing his best to imitate Snape. He did well enough if the gasps around him was anything to go by.

Ron and Hermione had managed to break through the crowd.

"Umm... Harry. He is talking about your next duel." Hermione informed worriedly.

"What about it?" Harry asked, still looking at Dean, who was holding his own wrists.

"Your next opponent is Ginny." Ron said.

Harry's face went blank. Then a menacing smile appeared in Harry's face. "Is that so?" He licked his lips as if tasting the fear in the room.

Whatever control Dean was holding over himself broke and in a flash he sent a powerful punch he could muster straight at Harry's face.

Harry didn't move and the fist impacted his nose rather gruesomely and loud sickening snap could be heard. Harry staggered back but maintained his balance, clutching onto the wall behind him.

There was a cry of pain but it didn't come from Harry. Dean was holding his wrists and his face was scrunched in intense pain. He must have broken his wrist.

Harry removed his wand and slowly moved towards Dean like a hunter going in for the kill. The blood running from his broken nose made him look more fearsome. Everyone froze, their minds unable to fathom what would happen next.

Dean stopped whimpering and looked at Harry with terror. It was the first time in his life that he was truly scared.


	23. A Game of Chess

A/N: Sorry for the late update. Anyway, I have got an 11K+ chapter here. Enjoy!

* * *

A Game of Chess

* * *

Harry towered over the crouched boy, who was trembling more with fear rather than the pain he felt from his broken wrist.

Dean couldn't draw his eyes away from the wand which was lifting in his direction. _Why won't anyone stop him? _

Just as the moment came where the wand was pointed right between his eyes and everyone feared the worst, it passed on without stopping.

Harry brought his wand to his nose and muttered the healing charm. He had deliberately moved the wand slowly in front of Dean. The look Dean had on his face was enough to sate Harry's revenge which a physical retaliation couldn't have satisfied. The pale crowd surrounding him was just an added bonus.

Harry siphoned off his blood from his face and clothes and he looked almost the same. Save for the eyes.

The green eyes were shining with rage as he said with a silky tone. "You will be serving a month's detention with Filch... for the whole of every Sunday." And as an afterthought, he added. "Starting from this Sunday."

Since he had been the Head Boy, Harry had not given a single detention and very rarely deducted house points. He would need to change that now. _If you want me to be bad then I will. Later, you will wish otherwise. _

Dean's fear was replaced by outrage. "You cannot do this to me. This Sunday is a Hogsmeade weekend."

"Oh! I didn't even realize it." Harry said with mock surprise. His eyes betrayed his sarcasm however. "I guess you might have to wait for the next one. Which is... yeah, another thirty three days away." He ended with a sly smile.

"You are doing this on purpose, aren't you?" Dean seethed, the crowd nodding along with him. "Getting some sick pleasure out of this. You are just misusing your Head Boy title."

"If you have a problem with my punishment, go to our Head of the house, or the Headmistress if need be. However, don't forget to mention what you did, physically assaulting an _innocent_ student." He stressed on the word 'innocent' with an evil grin. "You might end up never seeing the face of Hogsmeade again."

Harry moved through the crowd, which cleared a path for him, backing quickly away from him and almost falling over each other. He took a seat on the sofa opposite the fireplace. It seemed to be the only warm relief from the cold stares digging into his back.

Ron took a seat next to him while Hermione sat on the opposite side. It must have been a shock for them to see this side of him, Harry realized.

"What was that all about?" Hermione began her grilling.

"Go ask Dean." Harry shot back sharply. He was in no mood to play the question and answer game.

"Don't take that tone with me." Hermione said with hurt.

Harry glanced at her and moved his eyes back to the raging fire. "I am sorry." Harry said softly. "It's just that I am in a foul mood at the moment."

"But that is no reason to provoke him. There were many ways in which you could have dealt with that situation. You chose the worst path." Hermione stated with concern.

"I guess I did, didn't I?" Harry was still staring at the fire. "However, I have no qualms about what I did. Or didn't. I could have easily hexed him into next week or thrashed him into pulp, but I didn't. I restrained myself. Let me tell you that I was angry; very angry indeed. He had the nerve to say that I would hurt Ginny; my best friend's sister. Even now my hands are trembling with rage. He knew me for six years, we shared the same dormitory, but in fact, he didn't know me at all. Are all of these people with thick skulls? Can't they differentiate between what is right and what is wrong? I am really getting tired of all this... I dunno who that unlucky one would be who would face my wrath..." He trailed off, breathing heavily, his fist clenching.

Ron and Hermione looked at each other. They knew he was right and their hearts went out to him. But what could they do?

***B***

_If that is what they expect from me, that is what they will get. _

Harry sat perfectly still, the warm perfumed water caressing his body. His mind on the other hand was a place of hectic activity, the brain cells seemed to be working overtime. He didn't know whether he was capable of such thought process and was pleasantly surprised when multiple strategies popped up in his mind.

He had been holding back up till now, had tried to push his plans to the back of his mind, waiting for the students of Hogwarts to realize their mistake. Unfortunately, that moment never came. They were as stubborn as a mule.

No matter what he thought, Harry always wanted to lead and unite Hogwarts with himself in the front, just as planned. Being the villain was never his first choice.

He had waited patiently, enduring the criminal stares but to no avail. _No more_.

If they wanted a villain, so be it. But then who would take his place? Someone strong; someone who was of the light side without a doubt. Someone he could... control. _No! He didn't mean that_. Someone he could guide. Yeah, that's more like it.

The answer was right in front of him. His wand made him very powerful. His loyalty was undeniable. He was Harry's best friend. In other words, Ron Weasley was the perfect candidate.

There were other qualities as well - gullible, malleable, simpleton - that made him more than suitable, but Harry tried not to think about it. Since thinking about them would make him a manipulator. And he didn't want that. So he deceived himself.

He closed his eyes and thus began his plotting and planning.

And soon it turned into a game of chess. He was the king, Ron was the queen piece. Even though the queen seemed to be the most powerful piece on the board, the king held the reigns of all his pieces. He just needed to figure out who would play the other pieces and then he would have a game on his hand; a terrible and cruel game of manipulation.

His eyes flashed open and as a strategy materialized, slowly taking shape like a shadow and then solidifying into a perfect plan. Harry nodded to himself, a grim smile lining his mouth. _This will have to do. _

***B***

Harry walked out of the DADA class, exhausted by the impromptu mini-battle. Professor Hart was living up to his expectation with another of his rather unorthodox classes.

This time the benches had disappeared and the class had turned into a battleground. The class was randomly divided into two halves, with only stunners and shields allowed to be at their disposal. The stunned could be revived though.

In short, it was utter chaos. Even with all his training, Harry was stunned at least six times; as far as he could remember properly. He was still feeling a bit groggy. However, even through all this commotion, he had set his plan in motion.

Harry had singled out Malfoy and targeted him relentlessly. He might have got him around ten times not counting the stunners from other students that got him as well. Harry had made sure that Malfoy realized that he was being singled out by him. He was furious to say the least.

Harry rushed to the Great Hall before Malfoy could confront him. He needed an audience and what better place than the Great hall. After making sure he had a good head start, he ambled on, approaching his stage.

He could almost feel the eyes of Malfoy piercing his back. Harry walked in through the huge double door entrance, hearing the tinkling of spoons and plates and a gentle murmur floating around. He strolled over to his house table as slowly as possible. _What was taking Malfoy so long?_

He was so concentrated on what he would do next that he didn't notice Ginny appearing in front of him. His green eyes met her downcast ones and his well thought out plan flew off his mind. The apologetic look on her face told everything to Harry. He hadn't seen her since last night. He had holed himself in his quarters all evening and didn't even appear for dinner. A little trip to the underground kitchen did well to satisfy his hunger though.

She stood in front of him but no words left her mouth. _I am so sorry_.

"You don't need to apologize. None of what happened yesterday was your fault." Harry smiled at her reassuringly.

Ginny's eyes widened with astonishment. However, before anything more could be said, Malfoy had made his entrance.

"Potter!"

Harry slowly turned around to look at the seething pale boy, looking strangely small in absence of his two bodyguards. Malfoy even had a wand pointed in his direction.

_Okay_, Harry might have made him enraged him even more than he realized. _My Bad_. He had been expecting a verbal duel and Harry would have taken it from there on. Anyway, nothing happens as planned. Harry had good experience in that region.

Malfoy waved his wand without warning. "Incendio!"

Harry wasn't expecting it, not in front of the whole of Hogwarts that is. He would have been a tad late to block the spell since his wand was still in his pocket.

Ginny was right behind him and hence in the line of fire -literally- so he couldn't dodge it as well.

So Harry decided to take on the curse. Well, decided wasn't the right word because the curse was already upon him.

His robes caught fire as if they were doused in a flammable liquid and he was suddenly engulfed in the inferno.

Malfoy had gone deathly pale. He had expected Harry to defend himself. He didn't... he couldn't...

Everyone else gasped, the teachers stood frozen in their seats. Some shouted while some looked around frantically as if searching for a fire extinguisher to douse the flame. Those would be the muggles of course. It happened so fast that no one could do anything more than that.

Harry's wand was out in flash and banished his burning robes along with the shirt which also had caught fire. Dousing them with a water charm would also have helped but he might have suffered some burns. Also, Harry had an ulterior motive. He had a hidden ally among the crowd of students. A few months ago he would have been embarrased if he had done something similar, but now...

There were more gasps and then a deafening silence overtook the Great hall. The female students were nearly drooling at the image in front of them.

Harry was standing just in his jeans, his naked upper body up for display.

Their eyes roamed over his perfectly chiselled body and the well-defined lean structure, bulging considerably at the right places. There was no bulk, no fat, just pure muscles. He wore the scars that littered his body like battle armour, which made him look like a battle hardened warrior.

Harry gazed at everyone, standing stock still, a lingering smile on his face. He met everyone's eyes; eyes with unconcealed desire and jealousy. He didn't want to pretend but he was really enjoying this. He was sure none of the male students had a body that could compete with his. They were all too lazy, too dependent on magic, unbothered of their physique.

If it had been a muggle school, there wouldn't have been such a reaction. Such a physique wasn't uncommon among the muggles who usually took care of their body.

Satisfied of being the eye candy, Harry conjured a pair of robes. The chilling air that was freezing him also played a crucial role in that decision.

Harry's eyes found the pale boy in front and walked towards him as if he had all the time in the world.

His wand was at his side but even that didn't prevent Malfoy to take a step back. Malfoy had this strange feeling that he was completely out of his league here. His wand which was still pointed in Harry's direction wavered slightly.

As he walked, Harry drawled "Well Malfoy. That was entertaining. Too bad I wasn't amused. Lucky for you that I wasn't hurt or the consequences would have been... you get my drift, right Malfoy?"

Malfoy shuddered involuntarily. _But why?_ Potter was the same attention seeking half blood, then why was he feeling so scared of him? Why was he getting this feeling to run away from him as fast as he could? And why weren't his legs responding? It felt as if his whole body was under an Imperius curse with only his mind in his control. Was it Potter's cold brutal eyes or his sickly smile which thirsted for his blood?

"Detention Malfoy. A month long one at that and for every single day. Filch would be rather delighted by your company. I am sure you would also enjoy working with him, without magic that is." Sarcasm was gradually becoming Harry's forte. Surprisingly, Malfoy didn't even voice his protests. He was too numbed by the proceedings.

Harry stopped right in front of Malfoy whose eyes were swirling with fear.

He looked down at Malfoy's right arm which still had the wand pointed at his chest. It was as if Harry could look right through his sleeve. "That dark mark must be itching like hell, right Malfoy?" Malfoy pulled his right arm away from Harry, holding it with his other hand. He looked around to ensure no one had heard Harry. He looked back at Harry with horror, all the blood draining from his face. "I know what you had been up to last year. However, I knew knocking off Dumbledore was something more than what you could chew." Harry whispered with a wicked smile. Malfoy's eyes widened in shock and a small gasp escaped him. "I was surprised that you returned after failing to do the task you were assigned with. I guess your mother had something to do with it. Or maybe you were too scared to be around Voldemort and suffer his wrath? Or maybe… maybe you have been assigned a new task. A final chance for you. Which if you fail..." Harry was just bluffing, trying to get a reaction out of him. He was certain Malfoy had come to Hogwarts to escape the torture at the hands of Voldemort. "I think your next target is... me..." Malfoy nearly stumbled, his wild eyes quivering in the sockets and his lips trembled as if he was going to cry. Harry had unknowingly, stumbled on the truth. "Well, well I think I have got you all figured out, haven't I?" Harry mocked, tilting his head slightly. "Good luck with that. However, I won't be as forgiving as Dumbledore had been." His voice hardened, the unhidden threat which he whispered washed away all of Malfoy's control. The scared Slytherin ran away as fast as his legs could carry him. It was as if a mad murderer was running behind him with a bloody sword.

_The black queen was nearly captured._

"Everything alright Mr Potter?" The Headmistress approached him with a curious look, unable to understand what had happened.

"All is fine. Everything under control." Harry gave a reassuring smile and made his way back to the Gryffindor table. He noticed Ginny still rooted to the spot where he had left her, her jaw hanging wide open. He couldn't stop himself from chuckling. That did the job.

"Wha... what was that? I still can't believe what just happened. And you... Malfoy..." She fumbled, too confused with what to say.

Harry laughed heartily, his laughter echoing in the near silent hall. Well, no one can say that it wasn't entertaining. More than what he expected anyway.

He steered Ginny to their table, looking for couple of free spots where they could sit. Ginny just let Harry guide her. Harry noticed a fuming Dean but he ignored him.

Before Ginny could say anything, Ron and Hermione had come up behind them. "What's with Malfoy? Something happened?" Hermione inquired looking at the faces near her. No answers came however. Everyone was too stunned to answer her anyway.

Ron, unaware of the tension in the air went on. "I had a good laugh though. It was as if he was running for his life." Harry chuckled and nodded in agreement. "He didn't even notice us. Dunno what got his knot in a twist." He looked inquiringly at Harry who seemed to be the only one reacting to what he was saying.

"Let's just say that I scared the crap out of him." Harry replied mysteriously.

"What happened?" Hermione was a bit more forceful this time. Her hunger for information sometimes got to her.

"Nothing much. Malfoy and I had a bit of a spat. He ended up with an earful and a month long detention." Harry stated nonchalantly.

"Bit of a spat! That's the understatement of the year." Neville remarked, who was sitting a few seats away. Ron and Hermione quickly surrounded him and demanded an explanation. Neville could do nothing but oblige.

Harry turned to Ginny who was still staring at him curiously. She had managed to suppress her initial shock.

"So where we?" Harry's green eyes glittered with amusement. Ginny couldn't prevent the smile appearing on her face. "Yeah, I remember now. As I was telling you, there is no need for you to apologize. If anyone should be sorry," Harry turned to the boy in question who sat at a distance from them, red faced. "... it is Dean." He turned back to her.

"I know but..." Ginny trailed off. "I nearly hexed him after about the... incident last night. I did a lot of shouting as well. I think I might have overdone it though. Later, he was complaining about not hearing properly from one of his ears."

Harry grinned. "Well, that is some consolation." Ginny chuckled. He paused for a moment and then said. "I will rearrange his detention so that it doesn't affect whatever plans you guys have for Hogsmeade."

"You... you will do that?" Ginny asked with disbelief, her wide smile already believing him.

"I don't want to ruin _your_ Hogsmeade weekend." He stated simply.

Ginny moved as if to hug him but stopped herself at the last moment. Harry did his best to hide his disappointment. "Thank you." Was all she said but the emotional depth in her voice relayed her true gratefulness.

"What did you tell him to make him act like that?" Hermione turned to him, after interrogating Neville dry. He glanced over at the exhausted boy who shrugged back, and looked back at the interrogator. Her tone had been curious but Harry could hear the accusatory ring within. It confused him. He might have even imagined it...

"Later" Was his one worded reply. Hermione nodded with understanding and along with Ron settled down in some empty seats.

And everything returned to normalcy. The students muttered, gossiped, pointed fingers in his direction, gave him angry stares and all of that. Yeah, it was back to normal. _Sigh!_

***B***

Hermione nodded. Harry sighed in relief. His almost truth had managed to satisfy her. He had just left the part where Harry had come to know of Malfoy's new _assignment_. He didn't know how they would take it.

"Harry, did you bring us to the Room of Requirement just to tell us this?" Hermione inquired. _She was a clever girl, wasn't she?_ Her voice echoed in the hidden room located on the seventh floor. They were sitting on comfortable sofas, the gentle fire from a fireplace warming the air around them. With a cursory glance, it almost resembled the Gryffindor common room. It was just an impression though, one of the few abilities of the room.

Harry's chin rested on his clasped hands, lost in deep thought, or so it seemed.

He met their eyes and spoke with a deep voice. "Remember D.A?" They nodded with a glint in their eyes, shining with the remembrance of the fifth year. It had been fun. "We formed that because our education was lacking. Now that is not the case. Well, it doesn't seem that way at least. However, now we need something more than just a handful of rebellious students. We need a Dumbledore's Army in the truest of its sense." He paused to give weight to what he had said. The two pairs of eyes widened but they held their tongue. They didn't want to interrupt him, especially when he was so forthcoming. "You may be thinking why we need an army."

"Because Hogwarts, being one of the strongholds of the light side, will always be in danger and hence the students though young can be the first line of defence." Hermione promptly replied, her iteration slightly scripted but accurate.

Harry nodded with a smile. "Correct. But it won't be just defence; we would take part in offense as well. We will become a highly coordinated team, just like the Aurors but more resourceful and more mobile. If required we could act even outside the boundaries of Hogwarts. So what do you guys think about it?" Harry took in their flabbergasted expressions and he knew he had impressed them. He was just wary of Hermione. Sometimes having a brilliant friend did have some down sides. But she would be an integral part of his plan. The plan might not even work without her.

"You must have done a lot of thinking to come up with something like this..." Hermione pointed out, trying to be casual about it but Harry knew better.

"Yes, I have. Since Dumbledore died." Harry said lightly. Ron and Hermione paled slightly. Harry just gave them a false smile. "I know more than anyone at Hogwarts about the threat that we are up against. They need to realize that. The protection that Hogwarts offers is not as secure as one thinks. Last year was a good example." He ended bitterly.

An uncomfortable silence threatened to come between them but Ron came to their rescue. "So what is the plan?" He asked with a hint of excitement.

Harry smiled and said slowly. "This won't be anything like the D.A. we had earlier. It won't be a secret group. I will get it properly approved by the Headmistress." Harry said confidently, a plan already forming in his mind on how to convince her. That was the least of his troubles though. "No one can volunteer to join. They will be chosen. By me." He stressed with a look. _Umm... that came a lot like an order._ He didn't want to look as if he was in control. "You guys can of course discuss with me about it." He added as an afterthought. The damage was done though. Hermione stared at him as if trying to solve a puzzle. Ron might have missed the underlying meaning within Harry's statement.

"Do I get to be the second in command of the army?" Ron was almost bursting, an odd glint in his eyes that Harry didn't like. He had seen that somewhere but couldn't seem to remember.

"No." Harry declared with finality. "There will be only one leader; the rest will be just members to ensure equality." A disappointed look passed Ron's face and his eyes shook with suppressed anger. Hermione was looking at Harry so she missed it. It was not a good sight indeed. Harry was starting to doubt his decision that he was about to make. "And that leader will be you, Ron."

_The queen piece moved onto the chessboard. _

The look on Ron was indescribable; it was funny, very funny indeed. Harry helped himself with a laugh.

"You are not serious, are you?" Hermione was equally shocked, although she seemed unhappy by Harry's decision.

"I don't joke about such stuff." Harry stated, his smile non-existent. "Our leader must be strong and above all, should have everyone's trust in him. I might have been that person last year but due to some unforeseen _circumstances_, that is no more the case. Ron fits the bill perfectly while I, on the other hand, do not. Everyone hates me and Ron is much stronger than me now." Ron was nodding involuntarily with a dreamy look on his face that could have even competed with Luna's. It seemed like a dream come true for Ron anyway.

"But still..." Hermione still looked unconvinced and rightly so. Ron wasn't the first choice but Harry didn't have a choice in the first place, did he?

"He has us to guide him along the way. Come on Hermione. Give some credit to Ron for what he is. I am sure he can pull this off." He nodded reassuringly in Ron's direction, who seemed rather pleased by his support.

"Alright" Hermione agreed with a forced smile but there was still a hint of doubt within her voice.

Harry moved his head in her direction, his second strongest piece on the board. "You have an equally important job Hermione that I cannot entrust on anyone else besides you. Your job is to plan and strategize using the unmatched knowledge you possess, that every Ravenclaw craves for." Hermione couldn't prevent the blush to capture her face. Harry knew he had snagged her in his plan. He did have a way around people with words. He pushed on noticing her vulnerable state and trying to capitalize on it. "There is stuff that only you can do. You will play an important role in the army. Only if you accept that is." He looked at her with hopeful eyes, eyes she could never refuse.

"Of course." She nodded. Now which piece did she resemble? Hmm... strong, rule abiding and with impeccable foresight and judgement.

_A rook appeared on the board_. His second strongest piece on the board.

"I would however, want this to be kept under wraps for the time being. I still haven't got a list of the students who have unquestionable character and possess some talent. I am working on it though, just waiting to see how the Battle Club rounds play out."

"Can we help?" Ron asked eagerly.

"Sure. Point out potential candidates to me and we will discuss whether they could be a part of the army or not."

"Will anyone us know about this besides us till we make it public?" Hermione asked unnecessarily. She already knew the answer.

"Everyone I trust will know but it will be us who will be playing recruiters."

"Susan as well?" Ron inquired raising his eyebrow. Harry just made a face which drew a few chuckles and then shook his head. Only those he trusted; his inner circle.

"So I guess Neville, Ginny and... Luna?" Ron stated, the last name was uttered with a questioning look.

"Yes, that about sums it all." Harry declared. Luna might be the most innocent among them all but she was no muck when it came to duelling. Her unpredictability and nimble reflexes made her a rather formidable ally. And above all, he trusted her with his life.

So yes, he had two pieces on-board, five more remaining.

***B***

"Hey Harry."

The person in question looked up at Ginny who was standing in front of him, a smile on her face. There was something artificial about that smile that Harry didn't fail to notice.

Harry stood up from the chair he had conjured. "Something wrong?"

"What do you mean?" Her smile disappeared, her body shrugging self-consciously.

"You are very easy to read you know?" Harry said, turning his back to her. His voice was calming as if inviting Ginny to open up to him. She sighed heavily but kept quiet. "Dean troubling you?" He added with a casual tone. He didn't want to pry but neither did he want Ginny moping around.

"Not exactly. He doesn't doubt me or anything. I just can't stand him bad mouthing you in front me. We end up disagreeing with each other and sometimes we fight. We had one big argument today..." She sighed again.

Harry turned back to her with a chuckle. "You don't need to fight on my accord. Other people's hatred no longer affects me. It's as if I am immune to their hostility. As long as there are people who love me or at least don't hate me, I will be alright."

Ginny was left speechless at his words. And here she thought that she was the distraught one.

"My handsomeness has left you speechless, hasn't it? I know, I have this effect around people nowadays." Harry did his best imitation of Percy, earning a melodious giggle from Ginny. A wide grin involuntarily appeared on his face. He liked the sound of that.

"The girls practically swoon when you pass them. Your body is..." Ginny reddened slightly. "You have been working out a lot I guess." She said quickly.

"Yeah, I couldn't have stayed small and scrawny all my life, could I? I felt a change was in order and there you have it." Harry gestured to himself.

"I saw Romilda asking you out today." Ginny teased him with a playful grin. Harry just flashed a charming smile. "And you didn't even say no."

"I was just having some harmless fun. I just told her that I will think about it. Leaving my options open, you know?" Harry raised an eyebrow in her direction. Ginny, all too aware of his flirting, started to laugh. Harry watched her as she threw back her head and laughed, her red hair shining in the light. Harry averted his gaze, suddenly realizing what he was doing.

"You shouldn't have done that; given her hope that is." Ginny advised him, a smile still glued on her face. "Let me tell you that she is a dangerous damsel when it comes to this kind of stuff, she has a knack of being rather persistent and stubborn. You have been forewarned." She ended theatrically.

"I am all too aware of her ways." Harry said with a shudder.

"You are?"

"Yeah... last year she tried to trap me with a box of chocolates filled with love potion."

"She did?" Ginny exclaimed with a hint of anger. Harry just looked at her mild curiosity. "What happened after that?"

"Ron ate them instead. I had a hard time controlling him after that. And then he ended up getting poisoned. You remember that right?"

"I can never forget that. You saved my brother's life." Ginny exulted with sincerity and gratefulness.

Harry just gave her a half smile. "Anyway, I am not going to indulge every girl that comes up to me. They all are vain; their views about me change in a blink of an eye. I am sure it didn't affect you in the slightest, right?"

"Well... I..." Ginny faltered. Harry just grinned teasingly at her discomfort. "I am not vain!" She exclaimed.

"I never said that." The smile was still there on his face. Ginny just huffed. After a pause, Harry resumed. "Enough chat. We got some training to do. Buckle up Weasley; you are up for some heavy workout. I suspect you might not be up for it." Harry spoke with his sternest voice.

A challenging glow shimmered in Ginny's eyes. "Try me."

An hour later, Harry stood aside watching an out of breath Ginny, bowed on her knees. "You... weren't kidding when... you said it would be... heavy." She managed to gasp out.

Harry chuckled with amusement. "You need to work on your stamina but otherwise, you were awesome. You fought much better than the last time and it seems you took my suggestions to the heart."

She stood up straight, her breathing almost returning to normal, a tired but happy smile decorating her face.

"So what are your plans for our match?" Harry enquired.

"Why? Afraid that you might lose against me?" Ginny narrowed her eyes but couldn't stop the snicker.

"If you don't have a plan against me, you will lose." Harry said simply. She had yet to beat him in the last two training sessions that they had.

"I will lose anyway..."

"Well, at least you realize the unquestionable fact." Harry said with a chuckle. He was rewarded with a light punch. "Ow! You are the most violent Weasley ever!"

"You are supposed to reassure me or give me some words of confidence." Ginny said, folding her arms in front of her. "And here you are, boasting. What a trainer you turned out to be."

Harry's amusement disappeared and was replaced by an unreadable look. Ginny thought that Harry took her joke seriously and tried to apologize but Harry raised a hand to silence her. "Words amount to naught when it comes to duelling. It is your mind set and your strategy that gives you the advantage. No matter how powerful your opponent, if you have some unexpected tricks up your sleeve, you can win against the odds." Harry met her gaze and she nodded in understanding. There was respect in her eyes for him that pleased him. "As I have told you last time, you are extremely talented and well versed with duelling techniques. I think you will win against almost all your opponents."

"Besides you that is." Ginny noted with a small smile.

"I am of course an exception." Harry said puffing his chest.

"You are so full of yourself." She swung at him but Harry caught her fist in his palm. Harry looked in her eyes and she looked back. Neither of them tried to pull away their hands.

Harry suddenly released her and told her bluntly what had been on his mind. "I am forming an army in Hogwarts. Do you want to be a part of it?"

Ginny fumbled with words, her mouth opening and closing like a fish. No words left her though. She was still lost in the touch that they had just shared. Harry did his best to look serious, which was rather difficult what with the funny expressions on Ginny.

He had caught her off guard. It had all been a ploy on Harry's part to get at her when she was most vulnerable. He knew she wouldn't refuse; he just needed to avoid any questions. He knew it was cruel but it was required.

"Army? What are you saying?" She finally managed to say, her eyes wide with shock. He gave her an explanation similar to what he had given to Ron and Hermione. She was mildly surprised which was a good thing and Harry did his best to answer the questions as truthfully as possible. She seemed excited about it and agreed readily. "I am in. So what am I supposed to do?"

"Nothing for the moment. Once we have recruited enough members, we will mobilize." Harry let her know. She looked almost as excited as Ron. They were siblings after all.

Right, so which piece did she resemble? Not much thinking required there.

_The second rook walked in its place on the board. _

Harry was moving fast. Three pieces in a single day and two more were in sight. He would have to leave Hogwarts for that. _Tonight_.

***B***

"Soon we will have enough money to open a new branch at Hogsmeade."

"And after that... we will have branches all over the world."

"Yeah..."

"But you know..."

"Yes I know. Even though we are making a lot of money I still feel unhappy about something."

"Yes, there is something we aren't doing."

"Or we have been prevented from doing."

The twins sighed at the same moment. They were working in their underground lab of their shop at Diagon's Alley, creating a new joke product.

"How about I give you a chance to do just that?" This was a new voice, a much sharper and commanding one. It came from the darkness near the door.

Fred and George pulled out their wands in a flash and pointed it in the general direction of the voice.

"Who... who are you? How did you get in here?"

"Show yourself you coward!"

"I mean you no harm." This time the voice came from behind them, causing them to swivel around and dive for cover at the same time. It was unnecessary though. There was no one there as well.

"This guy is freaking me out."

"I second that." They whispered to each other from under the table. There was a rustle and they could make out a pair feet near the door. They looked at each other and nodded.

They stood up slowly from behind the table they were working on and threw their wands at the feet of the unknown speaker whose face was hidden in the shadow. The twins raised their hands to show that they were unarmed.

They noticed the head looking down at the wands at his feet and back at them. There was a deep throaty chuckle that gave them goose bumps. "Those fake wands won't fool me."

Realizing that their game was up, they drew out their real wands from their sleeves and with a curse on the tip of their tongues moved it in the perpetrator's direction.

They were in for a huge shock. The perpetrator was right in front of the desk, standing in between them. His hands clutched their wands but were making no effort to pull the wands away from them. What was more astonishing was the way the perpetrator looked. He looked a lot like a younger version of Dumbledore. Those steely blue eyes, the young but hard face with sharp pronounced features along with short hair were proof enough.

The blue eyed perpetrator stepped back releasing their wands. "I have come here not to hurt you. If I wanted that, I would have done it a long time ago. Point away your wands." He ordered and twins lowered them, looking warily at each other. "I have a proposition for you. A very profitable one if you like."

Fred found his voice first. "You can't just barge in and offer us a business proposal. Speaking of which, how were you apparating in our shop? It's well warded here, right George?" The person in question nodded.

"Wards don't stop me." The blue eyed businessman said nonchalantly.

The twins glanced at each other quickly, taking in that shocking information. That was not possible right?

"What do you want from us? Who are you?" George spoke up this time.

***B***

Harry gave them a quick glance. He knew this would be difficult. He knew they wouldn't trust him. And if he didn't manage to get their trust, he will lose the two pieces; two important pieces.

"My identity is not the discussion here. It's what I am asking of you is more important." Harry resumed with the strangely heavy voice that left his own throat. It was as if a second person was talking beside him.

"Which is?"

Harry took a deep breath. "I know you want to fight and you want to be a part of the Order but-"

"How do you know that? And about the Order?" Fred asked suspiciously, his wand arm twitching at his side.

"I have my sources." Harry gave a vague response. "Right so as I was saying, you want to be a part of this battle as much as anyone. I see a lot of potential in you guys. The Order is a fool to not have hired you a lot sooner."

"You know about us?" George said with a hint of pride in his tone.

"Who doesn't? However I am more interested in the behind the scenes work which you have been doing."

"How the hell- Never mind. So what exactly it is that we can do for you?" George said, trying to play along. This guy was full of surprises.

Fred didn't even need an indication from his twin as his eyes searched for diversions and exits.

"You need to do something more than just shield hats and cloaks. I will be going against Voldemort," The twins twitched but not much. "... and his supporters and I would need your arsenal to back me up. However, you need to maintain absolute secrecy. Tell nobody else about this. Else you both might be in danger." Harry didn't like the way it came out. It sounded more like a threat than a warning. _Great going Harry_, he mentally congratulated himself. "From others that is." He clarified.

The twins took it the wrong way, as expected. "We don't trust you." Fred put forth bluntly, eyes still hunting for an escape. "What if you use our products against our side? We cannot risk that. We would rather die than help the dark side." Their only exit was the doorway but it was blocked by the blue eyed man. They would have to go through him but Fred had this feeling that even with both of them together against him will not put as much as a scratch on the man in front of them. He didn't even want to think what would happen to them instead.

"You have made a valid point." Harry nodded his head. He paused, one of his hands stroking his chin. What could he show them to gain their trust? _Aha!_ Harry slowly pulled out Dumbledore's wand from his sleeve. The twins raised their wand in unison. "Stop! I just want to show you my wand. Or more specifically, Albus Dumbledore's wand." This stopped them, their wands half raised. Harry extracted the wand from his sleeve and placed it on the table in front of them.

It just took one look from them to realize whose wand it was. A thestral core was extremely rare and only one known wand had it.

"That is the Headmaster's wand." George almost whispered, surprise written all over his face.

"I thought the wand had disappeared. It had-" Fred mused but was cut-off.

"Yes, it had been willed to someone else. That someone is me." Harry picked up the wand and waved it at the table where a big bag appeared and then returned it to his sleeve. "As you can see, I can use the wand since I am the rightful owner. The wand was entrusted to me by Albus Dumbledore, the greatest warrior the light side ever had. I hope, even if he is no more, that you still have faith in him and his judgment?" Harry asked with a serene voice.

The twins grudgingly lowered their wands. "Was he your grandfather or something? You look a lot like him."

Harry just gave the twins a mysterious smile. "You need to understand that there is no middle ground here. You either trust me completely or you don't at all. I won't mind if you don't. I will still fight Voldemort and his minions and crush them all to the ground." There was so much venom in his voice that the twins almost pitied the ones who face his wrath. _Almost_. "Make your decision."

The twins looked at each other. It was if they were trained at Legilimency and read each other's mind at will. They turned to him and nodded. Their expressions were firm and their eyes held fear. Fear of deception. They would never be able to forgive themselves if such a thing happened.

_The two knights trotted to their places on the board. _

A grim smile cut across Harry's face. "Good. This bag in front of you holds ten thousand galleons. Use it and come up with stuff that I can use against the death eaters and their gang leader. I am sure you will do fine if what you have already managed is anything to go by."

The twins eyed the large amount of galleons warily and back at the blue eyed man. "We will do our best."

"I am sure you will." Harry didn't smile though, trying to be as formal and distant as possible. "Get working on it as soon as possible. We don't have enough time. If possible, put any of your further experimentation on joke shop products on hold. Time is of the essence and what I am asking of you is very important. I hope you realize that."

The twins frowned, not too happy about being ordered around by some stranger but they restrained from themselves. There was something about the man standing in front of them that was familiar besides his face. Something that they couldn't place. "I don't like the way you are telling us what to do and not to. We are helping you of our own free will. We can say no now as well."

"Do you really want that? I am the best hope our side has." Harry spoke casually, his eyes scanning the wall opposite the door with interest. There were a lot of shiny and glowing stuff around, spinning and whizzing. _Losing focus! Concentrate! _

"Harry Potter is our hope, not you." George remarked with a bit of anger in his voice.

Wasn't that ironical? Harry couldn't believe he was having this conversation. Neither could he believe his response. "You are holding your hopes with a seventeen year old _kid_? How utterly foolish."

"Don't say that!" Fred spoke up, matching his brother's tone. "He is young, yes, but he is a fighter; a fighter with heart as pure as gold. We have faith in him." The twins nodded, challenging him to say against them.

This was funny. Harry had a hard time trying to supress a chuckle, let alone give a response.

"You seem rather sure of your skills. Are you really that tough or are you just another big talker?" Fred mocked with a brave stance. He wasn't feeling so brave inside though.

Harry's face hardened. The twins moved a step back involuntarily. "Dumbledore's trust should be proof enough. Unless you need something more." A scary look shadowed Harry's face causing the twins to look away. Harry cringed at their reaction. He didn't want them to fear him_. Oh well..._

"How do we get in touch with you?" Fred asked, still not meeting his eyes.

"I will contact you if required." Harry replied, stepping back away from the table. He sensed the end of their interaction. "Remember, this needs to stay just between ourselves. I will not employ any magical binding since I trust you guys."

Fred raised his eyebrows. "You barely even know us. How can you trust us?" He quipped, his eyes finally meeting the blue ones.

Harry didn't explain himself though and kept quiet. "What do we call you?" Fred tried again with an expectant look.

Harry gave them a genuine smile. "Harry. Harry Potter."

The twins' gaze narrowed but didn't say anything. They didn't buy it. They thought he was playing around with them. Only if they knew...

"Until next time..." With one last look at both of them, Harry disapparated soundlessly.

***B***

Friday morning was extremely pleasant. At least to Harry.

The sky was cloudy, the air was cold and a chilly breeze cut across his face and ruffled his hair. The weather however, didn't have anything to do with his good mood. Try as he might, he couldn't put a finger on what put him in such a frame of mind.

He gazed at the Forbidden forest which seemed to move and groan with the wind as if it was alive. Creatures which lurked in the dark shadows of the forest were strangely silent. It was if they were waiting. Waiting for something to happen. And that something wasn't going to be good.

Harry shook his head, trying to clear his mind of the dark thoughts. One moment he was feeling good and the next he was dreading what the future held. His mind was surely playing tricks on him. Or he was just going crazy.

He was in his usual haunt. The Astronomy tower. Its peaceful solitude seemed to call out to him where he tried to find temporary solace from the dark life he was living. At least he tried. A heavy sigh left him.

There was no escape, no shortcut. Nor was the end in sight. He was blindly moving along the path that was planned out for him, but it went only halfway to his goal. The rest was up to him; a teenage boy who had yet to come to terms with what was required of him. A humungous task that no ordinary person could manage let alone a teenage boy. However, he didn't feel like a teenager anymore. His thoughts and the way he looked at things were much different. Life was moving too fast for him and he was already out of breath trying to catch up. But he needed to push forward. As long as he was breathing that is.

_Enough of this self-pity._ Harry turned on the spot and walked towards the Gryffindor common room to look for his best friends.

Before he could enter the portrait hole, Neville stepped out. A smile appeared on his face as he spotted Harry. Harry tried but couldn't match his smile, his attempt almost resembling a grimace.

"Hi Neville. Seen Ron and Hermione?"

"No. They must have already left for breakfast."

"I see. Let's move on then. My stomach is grumbling about the little care I am taking of it." Harry said with a smile. Neville chuckled.

They walked on side by side, the two people who could have had a similar destiny but fate had chosen Harry. Harry thought how it would be if they exchanged places, how his life would be. Could Neville have had managed what Harry had done so far?

Harry glanced at the boy walking next to him. Although Neville was hardened by the past few years, there was innocence and purity still evident in the glow on his face. He was a bit stout but otherwise he had managed a strong body. He was a warrior in the garb of a novice, his potential hidden from the naked eye. Harry knew his worth and was banking on his allegiance to him.

"Umm... Neville?" Harry began.

Neville turned his head to him. "Yes?"

"I am forming an army at Hogwarts. Do you want to be a part of it?" Harry put forth the question brusquely.

Neville's face broke into a wide grin and with excited eyes he said. "I am in." No questions, no doubts were raised. The blind faith in him was hurting Harry.

"I have chosen Ron to be our leader. Are you fine with that?" Harry pressed, as if trying to force Neville to resist or question his decision. That was counterproductive with respect to what he had planned but his conscious was eating him.

Neville seemed only mildly surprised but what he said next cut through Harry's heart like a dagger. "That's alright. I am sure you have your reasons. I trust you completely. Even with my life."

Harry looked away from Neville to hide the pained expression. He was deceiving them all and they still trusted him. He was playing with them and did still have faith in him. He was surely a wretched one. "Those words mean a lot to me." He tried to cover up.

"Anytime. Do tell me when and where we are going to meet. I am looking forward to it." Neville requested.

"Sure" Harry muttered.

_The bishop took its place on the board_. The rest of the pieces patiently waited for the final one to complete the formation.

They walked in through the double doors of the great hall and suddenly the great hall cascaded into a pin drop silence.

_Great! What happened now? _

Harry moved ahead without a break in his step and Neville followed him. Harry was all too accustomed with this behaviour and it didn't affect him in the least.

One look at the house tables and Harry found out the culprit. Almost everyone had a copy of the Daily Prophet. Was it another attempt to smear his name? Or was it the part of his plan already set in motion.

Ron and Hermione had saved a seat for him while Neville moved into another one close by.

The pair gave him a look as he sat next to them. "So what did I do now?" Harry asked with an amused chuckle. He was really curious what the stupid newspaper printed this time about him. Was it the one he was expecting?

Hermione didn't say anything and just handed him the paper. Harry was on the front page as usual. The headlines read "Harry Potter- The Dark Prince" The large moving image below the headline captured his attention. It was an awesome piece of photography. It was the moment Malfoy had attacked him after which he had banished his cloak along with his shirt.

The picture was more awesome than the reality. He seemed to appear out of the fire unscathed, his unclothed upper body so vividly detailed, every muscle captured in all possible angles. He looked like a masterpiece.

For a moment Harry suspected it wasn't him but the face gave away his identity.

Harry looked around the students sitting at the Gryffindor table for the person responsible for this.

Colin had a wide grin on his face. Harry smiled back and re-examined his picture. There was a hint of darkness that Harry could perceive in his own face, a sharpness that was never there before. He didn't know he was capable of that merciless stare that he had sent towards Malfoy. He had changed. A change which was irreversible.

"Harry, if you have finished gawking at your own handsomeness, would you spare a look at the text below?" Hermione enquired with an amused look on her face. Students around them sniggered at her comment.

Harry wore a proud look and proclaimed. "Aren't I the dashing one?" He gazed at everyone within hearing distance. A mixture of jealousy and desire, agreement and hatred met his eyes. Some chuckled while some seethed. Every reaction possible was on display.

Harry looked back down at the paper and read.

_'The infamous Harry Potter is back in the news. It seems gossip around him will never cease to exist. The Chosen One, after allegedly buying his way into becoming the Head Boy has done things that have got everyone talking. One might say that the hunger of fame has bitten Harry Potter big time. If he wasn't so famous already. _

_Our helpful informers in Hogwarts have been rather generous in sharing with us the exciting happenings in the school. I know you all must be dying to know what our Chosen One has been doing. _

_Above is the picture snapped by one of the students in the Great Hall of Hogwarts. Mr Potter had been snapped while flaunting his rather muscular body and posing for the world to gawk at. _

_As can be seen, he is nothing short of good looking with his robust and attractive body. There had been rumours that few of the female students even fainted after getting a look at the Boy Who Lived. _

_However, we have got some disturbing information that all is not well and our preconceived image of our Chosen One is not as clean as we thought. _

_One valid source has told us that body strengthening potions have played a huge role in his muscular look. We have also learned that the Head Boy has been using his title to bully other students. There have been unconfirmed reports but a few of them say that he assaulted a student from his own house, breaking the student's wrists in the scuffle. We have also heard that Mr Potter allegedly threatened the heir of the Malfoy family, Draco Malfoy. Has our beloved Harry Potter taken a turn for the dark?  
_

_Taking everything into consideration we would not be wrong to aptly name him as the Dark Prince. _

_However, this is all speculation and we believe only in hard facts and abstain from indulging in pointless gossip. Hence, we will leave it to our readers to decide what to believe in and what not to. _

_(For a full report, turn to page 2. Detailed eye witness accounts can be found on page 3 and 4)_

_Rita Skeeter' _

Harry started at the paper for a moment and then a dark smile appeared on his face which he hid behind the paper. _Perfect. A job well done._ It seemed that the picture taken by Colin and the anonymous letters he sent to the Daily Prophet had done the trick. Skeeter took care of the rest, unknowingly that is.

After composing himself, he folded the paper and dropped it on the table with disinterest.

"Hypocrisy has its limits. The Daily Prophet has gone far beyond that. On one side they gossip relentlessly and when the damage is already done they tell us not believe in rumours." Hermione huffed out, noticing that Harry had finished reading the paper. "What's more? Everything that has been written about Harry is false; a lie. This won't help your image at all Harry unless you do something about it." She looked pointedly at him.

"I have stopped worrying about what the papers write about me. I don't give a damn to put it bluntly." Harry said with indifference. He dug into his breakfast and without looking up he worked at it. No one spoke after that declaration. There was coldness around Harry that repelled any sort of conversation and an uncomfortable silence presided around him. It was the quietest breakfast Gryffindor had ever had. Now that was saying something.

***B***

The blonde stared at the green eyed boy with as much hatred as he could muster. But he hated himself more. For running away from him. For running away from himself.

He knew it a long time ago. He was nothing without his last name. Nothing at all. He was a disappointment to his father and mother. To his godfather and trainer. He was a disappointment to himself. There were numerous chances where he could have made his own name and made them all proud. But it was not to be. He was too much of a coward.

He sighed. He was sitting in the middle on the Slytherin table but no one bothered him. No one talked to him. He liked it that way. However, sometimes... sometimes he wished... for true friends.

He was jealous. Of everyone. Of Harry Potter. And yeah, he resented him as well. He hated his fame, his friends, he hated everything about him. He was everything he himself ever wanted.

Another sigh left him. He was just living; only because he too was afraid to die. Such a coward he was.

After playing with his food, Draco walked out of the Great Hall. His usual bodyguards were curiously missing. He didn't need them anyway...

As he exited the double doors, he saw Weasley and Granger standing at one side. He hated that Weasel but he was wary of his wand. Their eyes met each other and Draco hastily broke it.

His eyes moved onto Granger who was looking elsewhere. He hated her as well; he hated her know-it-all attitude, he hated her being a teacher's pet, he hated her hair, he hated those parched lips, those shiny brown eyes, he... he hated... did he?

"Move your dirty eyes away from Hermione!" Weasley exclaimed, almost shouting.

Draco shook his head. Wha... what was he thinking? He looked sharply at the Weasley as he walked towards him. His one hand was near his pocket, ready to bring his wand into play at the slightest of provocation or danger.

"I was just wondering why a mudblood like her was even allowed to come to Hogwarts." Draco drawled out with the usual smirk plastered on his face. That had included a lot of training in front of the mirror. He was rather proud of his smirk. "You know, I find it very difficult to breathe when she is around. What with-"

"Shut up!" Weasley already had his wand out and would have cursed him if not for the restraining hand of Granger. Draco had one out as well but he knew he was too close to dodge an attack.

"Get out of here Malfoy. You know what will happen to you if go against Ron." The pride in her voice hurt him. He didn't even know why but it did. He couldn't even phrase a proper retort.

"What's going on here?"

Draco turned his head to his left to see Potter walking towards them, but his hard eyes were on him only. It made him a bit uncomfortable but Draco didn't show it. It would take a lot more than that to scare him. Only if he knew what was in store for him…

"Ah! The famous Potter brat has come to save the day. I was just making this blood traitor and the mudblood aware of the harsh truth when your nose came butting in." Malfoy said arrogantly, a sickly smile playing on his face.

Potter's feature sharpened and suddenly something changed. Draco could almost feel it. He couldn't prevent the shudder that left his body. Suddenly everything became so cold that he could hardly breathe. His eyes widened in shock as a white glow appeared around Harry as he moved slowly, almost floating towards him. Draco blinked twice unable to believe what his eyes were seeing. He felt as if a dementor was swooping down over him to suck his soul. Another tremor shook his body.

"I will not have you insulting my friends around me. The ramifications would be irreversible. Is that understood?" Potter said quietly, but the sharp edge in his voice even unsettled Weasley and Granger. However, Draco didn't notice that.

Draco's courage was being tested; which wasn't much. He buckled, literally.

Every part of Draco's body was screaming; begging to be as far as away from him as possible. However, it seemed he couldn't move. The cold air might have frozen his brain, at least that's how it appeared.

"Malfoy?"

That broke him from his trance and he stumbled, falling flat on his behind. Weasley sniggered while Granger held her mouth, trying to stifle a giggle.

Potter maintained his icy glare, not even a hint of smile or amusement on his face.

Draco picked himself up, along with his dignity or what was left of it, and backed away with unhidden fear in his eyes. After getting some distance between himself and Potter, Draco all but ran with his tail between his legs. Weasley's laughter echoed along the hallway.

***B***

Harry watched the hastily retreating figure of Malfoy. When he was out of sight he turned to his friends.

Ron's laughter had died and was looking at him as if he had just pulled off an amazing trick. Hermione... well she wore the usual suspicious look. Did he also notice fear? _Oh well_. Some explanations were in order. Can't have his best friends fearing him, could he?

"That was awesome!" Ron exclaimed. "I could even feel the raw power of the magic surrounding you. I kinda feel lucky I was not in Malfoy's place. And the way he acted was totally hilarious." Ron again broke into fits of laughter, the incident etched in his memory forever.

Hermione still hadn't said anything. "Something wrong Hermione?" Harry asked.

That got her speaking. "Wrong? That... that was... unnatural. The aura that surrounded you, the coldness that released from you." She shivered. "I was scared. Don't get me wrong. I don't mean that you were going to attack or something, but I was chilled to my bone... You didn't seem surprised about it though. If you had so much power, why didn't you tell us about it? Why did you hide it from us?" There was a hurtful look in her eyes.

Harry burst out laughing. This was more hilarious than he could have imagined. It was well over a minute when he finally managed to gather himself. There was a look in Hermione's face which demanded an explanation. Harry relented.

"I am not super powerful or something. And that wasn't some raw power I displayed. It was just a trick my wand played." He paused to let it sink in. "The glow or the aura as you called it was just a strong Lumos charm. I held the wand behind my back to give an effect. And the coldness you felt was just a normal freezing charm. It seems I can't feel my behind anymore, I must have held it too close." Harry joked rubbing his bottom. Ron laughed some more and Hermione couldn't stop the giggle. They laughed together, reminding Harry of the old times. He wished...

"That was brilliant I must say." Hermione acknowledged. That was a rare compliment coming from her mouth so Harry obliged with a bow. Harry was all smiles that day, a rarity considering how the past few months had transpired.

***B***

Harry finally spotted Luna, the last piece required to start the game. She was busy working on a parchment, sitting over a table in the corner. Harry quietly moved towards her, trying his best not to disturb her.

She heard him anyway. She looked up and a smile spread on her face. "Hi Harry. Come to meet me?"

"Well... Yeah."

The smile widened and her eyes focused on a spot just above his left shoulder. "Thank you. Not many have the time to talk with me these days. Everyone is rather busy with their lives." There was no sadness, no longing in her voice. It was just a statement but it affected Harry even more. Harry realized that she was lonely and she was suffering, even if she didn't realize it herself. She didn't deserve this. She was a symbol of innocence. Her soul glowed with pure untarnished light. She was like a little sister to him, reminding him of his good side that was quickly diminishing.

"You have something to tell me?" Luna enquired, the smile still stuck to her face. She was looking him in the eyes, her unwavering gaze diving into the depths of the ocean like green eyes.

He sat in front of her, a smile coming to his face automatically. "Actually I did." He paused, trying to come up with a way to properly phrase it. "I wanted to know whether you are interested in joining the army I am forming at Hogwarts." He knew what her answer would be.

"Yes" Was her one worded assent. The lack of excitement would have disappointed someone else but Harry knew her. He just smiled back.

"Great. I have made Ron the leader. I will tell you when we are ready." Luna nodded.

_The final piece, a bishop, was on the board_. He was all set.

"You are leaving?" Luna asked. Harry was about to get up, but stopped himself. His task was already completed so what is the point? Harry fought the cold voice in his mind and smiled at Luna.

"No" Luna seemed very happy about that. "So what are you studying? I could help you, you know... Ah! I forgot. You are a Ravenclaw. You are better off without my help. Can't let you fail, can I?" A weak attempt at humour, Harry realized. He was no good at cracking jokes. But Luna giggled anyway. Harry grinned.

Harry kept her company for around an hour, spending most of time in comfortable silence. The few times they spoke, Luna told him about his father and the adventures they had been on to look for new mythical creatures. Surprisingly, Harry had a good time and he felt a lot lighter as he walked out of the library.

As he strode to his quarters, he thought of his plan. It was risky, dangerous and would cause him a lot of mental pain. He knew all that but there was no other choice.

The pieces were in place and the game had begun. He was in complete control.

It suddenly hit Harry. The reason behind his good mood. He was finally in control of his life, which had until now been drifting along with the wind.

He was also had some control over people around him. He would need to manoeuvre them in accordance with his design.

It was strange a feeling, being in control. It was nothing short of euphoria. In hindsight, he knew he was doing a terrible thing, manipulating people and influencing them.

However, it was necessary. Terrible but necessary. For the greater good. He was sounding almost like Dumbledore.

He was becoming the very things he truly resented. Only if he knew what he was going to become as he walked along the treacherous path that lay before him…

* * *

A/N: Next chapter is going to awesome. At least I am hoping it to be. Anyway, thanks for reading.


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